NAPOLEON  IN  HIS  OWN  WORDS 


pllUlliniHlll/llTIiniDIJiTITI 


NAPOLEON 

In  His  Own  Words 


FROM  THE  FRENCH  OF 

JULES  BERTAUT 


Translated  by  Herbert  Edward  Law 
and  Charles  Lincoln  Rhodes 


Authorized  Edition 


CHICAGO 

A.  C.  McCLURG  &  CO. 

1916 


REPLACFNG 

Copyright 

A.  C.  McClurg  &  Co. 
1916 


Published  June,  1916 


Copyrighted  in  Great  Britain 


W.  F.  HALL  PRINTING  COMPANY,  CHICAGO 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Author's     Preface ix 

Translators'    Preface xxi 

The  Character  of  Napoleon     .     .     .     .     .  xxv 

-     '  "     •         •'     '  r'      ' 

CHAPTER 

I     On   Success I 

II     Psychology    and    Morals                      .  II 

III  Love  and  Marriage 28 

IV  Things  Political 35 

V     Concerning  the  Fine  Arts  ....  66 

VI     Administration 81 

VII     Concerning     Religion 107 

VIII    War 116 

IX     Sociology         140 

Notes 149 


[vii] 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE 


THIS  collection  of  Napoleonic  aphor- 
isms is  not  the  first  attempt  of  the 
kind  that  has  been  made.  The  genius  of 
Napoleon  has  always  challenged  the  atten- 
tion of  historians,  as  it  has  that  of  the 
unpretending  curious  and  lovers  of  strong 
and  beautiful  maxims;  and  following  the 
Restoration,  as  after  the  rebirth  of  Imperi- 
alism under  Napoleon  in,  there  were  those 
who  diligently  collected  these  odds  and  ends 
of  the  Emperor's  thoughts.  However,  if 
this  attempt  to  popularize  these  reflections 
of  genius  is  not  entirely  new,  I  do  not  think 
any  other  has  been  undertaken  with  the 
same  care  and  candor. 

We  are  now  sufficiently  distant  from  Na- 
poleon to  judge  him  with  the  dispassionate- 
ness of  an  age  appreciative,  but  careful  to 
do  justice.  And  just  because  there  is  little 
concerning  this  great  man  which  is  not  now 
known,  we  are  able  to  classify  in  a  system- 
[ix] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

atic  way  the  products  of  his  mind.  With- 
out attempting  a  too  rigid  classification, 
therefore,  I  have  attempted  to  present  the 
diverse  aspects  of  the  Napoleonic  mentality, 
and  to  view  him  successively  in  his  charac- 
ter of  professor  of  psychology  and  morals, 
of  politics  and  administration;  as  an  au- 
thority on  love  and  marriage;  as  a  patron  of 
the  arts ;  as  a  soldier  and  as  a  sociologist. 

The  first  thing  that  strikes  one  in  reading 
these  thoughts,  these  sentiments,  these  max- 
ims, is  the  constant  concern  for  sovereign 
authority  which  they  reveal. 

Napoleon,  in  imagination,  was  constantly 
concerned  with  the  good  of  his  subjects. 
Whether  in  his  literary  works,  properly  so 
called,  or  in  his  immense  correspondence  or 
in  his  conversation  or  in  his  public  speeches 
or  in  his  St.  Helena  confidences,  he  has  taken 
occasion  to  express  himself  on  a  multitude 
of  problems  touching  religion,  science, 
morals,  art,  politics  and  sociology.  And 
always  he  does  it  as  a  sovereign,  as  a  master 
conscious  of  his  authority,  obsessed  with 
the  weight  of  his  extraordinary  responsibil- 
ity and  of  the  duty  that  devolved  upon  him. 

Only  rarely  is  his  attention  swerved  from 
[x] 


Author's  Preface 


the  attainment  of  the  final  solution  of  a 
social  or  moral  problem.  Almost  always  a 
sure  instinct  brings  him  back  to  the  stead- 
fast aim  of  his  efforts,  and  these  efforts, 
when  they  are  analyzed,  have  no  other  aim 
than  a  transcendental  utilitarianism.  To 
bring  to  bear  constantly  throughout  every 
foot  of  the  Empire,  in  every  soul  under  his 
authority,  the  powers  of  all  for  the  aggran- 
dizement and  prosperity  of  the  nation,  that 
was  his  unheralded  but  real  anxiety  and 
purpose.  To  compel  every  citizen  to  render 
all  that  he  is  capable  of  rendering  of  social 
usefulness,  to  drag  from  men,  in  spite  of 
themselves  and  by  an  iron  compulsion,  all 
that  they  possess  of  moral  wealth  and  in- 
fluence, to  watch  unceasingly  the  play  of 
institutions  and  their  machinery,  from  their 
simplest  to  their  most  intricate  mechanism, 
that  nothing  fail  of  the  particular  work  as- 
signed to  it  —  that  was  his  constant  pur- 
pose. 

We  need  not  be  astonished  therefore  if 
this  obsession  constantly  betrays  itself  in  the 
seemingly  unrelated  subjects  of  psychology 
and  morals.  Nor  ought  we  to  be  surprised 
to  find  among  aphorisms  relating  to  love, 
[xi] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

this  opinion  of  Napoleon  concerning  wom- 
en :  "  The  most  important  woman  in  the 
world,  living  or  dead,  is  the  one  who  has 
borne  the  most  children ;  "  or  among  those 
concerning  Christianity,  "  The  Christian 
religion  will  always  be  the  firmest  support 
of  every  government  clever  enough  to  make 
it  serve  it;  "  or  among  those  concerning  art, 
"  Tragedy  is  the  school  of  genius;  it  is  the 
duty  of  sovereigns  to  encourage  and  support 
it;"  or  again,  "Books  are  too  argumen- 
tative not  to  corrupt  a  people  by  dishabitu- 
ating it  from  fact." 

These  are  the  beliefs  of  a  sovereign  who 
gives  his  thought  chiefly  to  the  play  and 
interplay  of  men  and  things  on  the  stability 
and  power  of  the  state.  Truth  never  ap- 
pears naked  to  such  a  mind;  she  is  always 
more  or  less  draped.  He  never  sees  truth 
objectively,  but  always  in  relation  to  some 
one  or  some  thing. 

But  what,  in  the  last  analysis,  is  this  util- 
itarianism which  is  the  essence  of  Napo- 
leon's genius?  It  is,  in  a  word,  the  art  of 
adaptation  carried  to  its  highest  expression. 
To  know  how  to  create  "  the  man  for  the 
place/'  as  the  trenchant  English  saying  has 
[xii] 


Author's  Preface 


it,  and  to  get  the  supremest  possible  out 
of  him  —  such  is  the  whole  secret  of  the 
Napoleonic  necromancy.  This  genius  re- 
quires for  its  highest  exercise  certain  quali- 
ties which  the  Emperor  possessed  in  the 
maximum  of  intensity. 

In  the  first  place  he  had  an  extraordinary 
gift  of  insight.  Napoleon  was  first  of  all  a 
dissector  of  souls  —  that  is  easily  seen  in  run- 
ning through  the  chapter  on  psychology  and 
that  on  politics.  It  is  evident  also  in  the 
maxims  collected  under  the  title  "  Adminis- 
tration." 

Let  us  reflect  that  he  had  lived  through 
the  most  astounding  years  of  history,  those 
during  which  the  human  heart  revealed  it- 
self in  all  its  nakedness;  that  he  had  known 
things  at  their  worst,  and  seen  at  close  range 
the  most  sinister  souls.  But  his  knowledge 
of  the  human  being  was  not  only  of  a 
rigorous  exactitude,  he  also  knew  the  deep 
furrows  which  nationality  plows  in  tem- 
perament; and,  in  particular,  some  of  the 
judgments  of  the  French  character  he  has 
expressed  have  the  quality  of  finality. 

Moreover  his  insight  has  no  tinge  of 
cruelty.  He  was  himself  too  quivering  with 
[xiii] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

life  to  linger  a  pessimist  at  the  spectacle  of 
humanity.  On  the  other  hand  he  visions  too 
clearly  not  to  take  advantage  at  once  of 
what  he  sees  or  to  profit  by  his  experience. 
For  example,  he  observes  that,  "  Men  are 
greedy  for  emotion,"  and  he  adds  at  once, 
"  their  enthusiasm  is  his  who  can  cleverly 
arouse  it."  He  says,  "  It  is  important  to 
recognize  human  weakness,"  but  he  ex- 
claims as  a  conclusion,  "  and  turn  it  to  your 
advantage  rather  than  to  oppose  it."  Thus 
always,  in  him,  policy  followed  close  on 
psychology. 

But  keen  insight  alone  is  not  sufficient  to 
continually  fit  men  for  the  places  to  be 
filled.  It  does  not  suffice  to  recognize  ability 
in  men ;  it  is  necessary  to  inspire  them.  Fol- 
lowing insight,  comes  guidance.  That  is  the 
difficult  thing.  No  mind  was  more  single 
in  its  will,  no  energy  more  irresistible  than 
his.  With  him,  to  form  a  purpose  was  to 
execute  it.  His  mind  could  conceive  of 
neither  obstacles  from  within  nor  from 
without  which  could  swerve  it.  While  his 
prudence  might  suggest  temporary  yielding 
to  circumstances,  he  avowed  it  with  a  sort 
of  superior  artlessness :  "  Pretexts  never 
[xiv] 


Author's  Preface 


fail  the  man  who  has  the  power  to  do  what 
he  pleases."  However,  read  and  re-read 
these  aphorisms  —  those  which  are  the  fruit 
of  long  experience,  as  his  maxims  of  war, 
those  which  were  the  spontaneous  outburst 
of  the  moment,  or  those  which  were  the 
result  of  ripened  thought  —  the  positive  way 
he  says  them  gives  them  the  seal  of  au- 
thenticity. 

But  in  addition  to  the  power  of  insight, 
and  the  gift  of  authority,  a  certain  recog- 
nition of  the  supremacy  of  moral  ideas  was 
necessary  thoroughly  to  understand  the 
citizen-subjects  of  the  Empire,  and  to  fore- 
see how  they  would  adjust  themselves  to 
any  given  set  of  conditions.  The  Emperor 
recognized  this  supremacy  of  moral  ideas; 
not  as  a  deep  and  abiding  conviction,  nor  as 
a  superstitious  belief.  The  man  who  said 
that  a  monarch  ought  to  be  acquainted  with 
all  religions  in  order  to  be  ready,  on  occa- 
sion, to  embrace  them  all,  had  but  a  modi- 
cum of  superstition,  moral  or  religious.  But 
here,  again,  Napoleon's  instinct  for  policy 
came  into  play,  and  he  realized  that  any 
empire  in  which  sound  moral  principles, 
were  not  given  free  scope,  was  bound  to  fall, 
[xv] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

For  him,  therefore,  outwardly  to  conform 
to  morality,  to  preach  morality,  to  defend 
it,  and  to  impose  it  on  men  and  to  require 
it  of  them  by  all  possible  means,  was  merely 
calculation.  The  result  of  it  he  intended 
should  be,  everywhere  and  always,  a  realiza- 
tion of  the  thought  expressed  by  that  char- 
acter in  Italian  comedy  who  is  made  to  say, 
"  I  will  make  you  happy  in  spite  of  your- 
selves." Similarly,  Napoleon  might  have 
said  to  his  subjects,  "  I  will  make  you 
moral,  religious,  and  honest  in  spite  of  your- 
selves," adding  to  himself,  "  because  such  is 
to  the  supreme  interest  of  the  Empire." 

Every  means  is  good  to  him  which  will 
firmly  fix  these  truths  in  the  French  mind; 
and  he  uses  all  means  with  consummate 
adroitness.  When  the  Grenadier  Gobin 
committed  suicide  for  love,  Napoleon  at 
once  addressed  his  troops  thus :  "  A  soldier 
ought  to  overcome  the  melancholy  and  bit- 
terness of  hopeless  passion;  to  abandon 
himself  to  disappointment  without  resis- 
tance, to  kill  himself  in  order  to  escape  from 
himself,  is  to  abandon  the  field  of  battle 
without  gaining  the  victory."  Thus  he 
shows  by  example  to  those  willing  to  see  it, 
[xvi] 


Authors  Preface 


that  moral  qualities  are  indispensable;  and 
Napoleon  knew  how  to  utilize  all  means  to 
arouse  them.  Thus  was  strengthened  in 
each  soul  the  conviction  that,  in  proportion 
to  his  ability,  it  was  the  duty  of  each  citizen 
to  cooperate  for  the  grandeur  and  prosperity 
of  the  country  represented  in  the  person  of 
the  Emperor. 

Such  are  the  qualities  indispensable  to 
one,  who,  through  a  supreme  utilitarianism 
would  fashion  men  in  his  own  image  and 
make  of  them  the  instruments  of  his  dom- 
ination. But  important  as  these  qualities 
are,  obvious  as  it  is  that  they  should  be 
found  in  a  sovereign,  they  are  still  insuffi- 
cient to  accomplish  supreme  results.  There 
must  be  added  to  them  a  sense  of  harmony, 
an  artistic  instinct  for  the  sculpture  and 
design  of  the  monument  to  be  raised,  a 
searching  vigilance  careful  of  the  smallest 
details,  leaving  nothing  to  chance ;  in  a  word, 
that  sense  of  form  which  Napoleon  pos- 
sessed in  the  highest  degree,  and  which 
makes  him  kin  to  the  world's  great  artists. 

I  recall  M.  Paul  Bourget,  one  day,  in  one 
of  those  satisfying  conversations  in  which 
he  excelled,  developing  the  theory,  that,  as 
[  xvii  ] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

the  Emperor's  family  was  of  Tuscan  origin 
one  would  expect  to  find  in  him  an  artistic 
sense,  an  appreciation  of  form,  an  inherited 
sense  of  balance  and  harmony.  And  this 
indeed  it  is  easy  to  recognize  in  his  work, 
which  though  a  little  massive,  perhaps,  is 
admirably  proportioned. 

This  impression  is  never  so  vividly  pre- 
sented to  my  mind  as  in  considering  the 
minute  care  for  the  smallest  details,  with 
which  Napoleon  occupied  himself  with  an 
untiring  passion.  In  his  maxims  regarding 
war  there  will  be  found  one  which  is  ex- 
tremely characteristic  in  this  respect.  It  is 
where  he  is  speaking  of  a  commanding  gen- 
eral's addresses  to  his  troops,  and  of  the 
necessity  of  issuing  them  on  the  day  before 
the  battle  or  the  day  before  that.  "  It  is 
not,"  he  says,  "  that  addresses  to  an  army 
at  the  moment  of  action  make  soldiers 
brave;  their  usefulness  lies  in  their  effect 
on  the  course  of  the  campaign,  in  neutraliz- 
ing rumors,  and  in  furnishing  matter  for 
camp-fire  talk."  What  a  keen  and  compre- 
hensive understanding  of  camp  life  this  last 
phrase  reveals !  And  it  is  strikingly  typical, 
as  it  is  suggestive,  of  that  creative  imagina- 
[  xviii  ] 


Authors  Preface 


tion  which  enabled  Napoleon  to  foresee  and 
estimate  the  action  and  reaction  of  things 
and  of  words,  to  their  most  distant  conse- 
quences. The  care  for  detail  is  there,  and 
whoever  possesses  it  to  this  degree  is  born 
to  achievement,  no  matter  in  what  direction 
his  activities  lead  him. 

These,  it  seems  to  me,  are  some  of  the 
conclusions  this  book  has  to  suggest.  There 
is  no  pretense  that  it  gives  a  new  presenta- 
tion of  Napoleon,  his  qualities  or  his  de- 
fects; but  it  will  serve  to  recall  and  fix  in 
the  memory  some  of  those  utterances,  which, 
after  a  hundred  years,  still  describe  the  social 
order,  and  which  are  the  fruits  of  a  mind 
which  gained  them  at  a  cost  entitling  them 
to  be  called  experience. 

JULES  BERTAUT 


[xix] 


TRANSLATORS'  PREFACE 


IT  is  now  almost  exactly  a  hundred  years 
since  Waterloo.  Every  one  of  those 
years  has  seen  additions  to  the  ever-growing 
volume  of  Napoleonic  literature.  Opinion 
regarding  Napoleon  is  gradually  becoming 
clarified,  as  more  and  more  the  truth  of 
history  is  being  separated  from  the  interests, 
the  passions,  and  the  limitations  of  knowl- 
edge which  have  obscured  it  in  the  past. 

This  collection  of  Napoleon's  sayings, 
which  M.  Jules  Bertaut  has  presented  under 
the  title  of  Virilities,  is  one  of  the  latest,  as 
in  some  respects  it  is  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant, of  late  contributions  to  the  subject. 
It  is  not  that  he  has  discovered  new  facts 
about  Napoleon.  As  he  says  himself,  there 
is  probably  little  that  concerns  Napoleon 
which  is  not  now  known.  Because  this  is 
so,  we  have  been  able  to  see  Napoleon  in 
the  light  of  fairly  complete  knowledge  of 
contemporaneous  conditions.  But  what 
[xxi] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

M.  Bertaut  has  done,  is  to  enable  us  to  see,  as 
it  were,  through  Napoleon's  own  eyes.  We 
are  able  otherwise  to  know  what  Napoleon 
did,  and  what  were  the  circumstances  that 
influenced  him.  But  herein  M.  Bertaut  has 
given  us,  in  brief,  it  is  true,  and  by  illustra- 
tion rather  than  in  complete  detail,  what 
Napoleon  said  about  the  things  he  did,  the 
reasons  he  gave  for  doing  them  (which  are 
often  only  the  reasons  he  wanted  believed), 
and -the  purposes  he  had  in  mind. 

It  is  true  that  there  is  nothing  in  this 
collection  of  Napoleon's  sayings  which  has 
not  been  published  somewhere  before  in  the 
collected  editions  of  his  orders,  his  corre- 
spondence, or  his  formal  works.  But  they 
are  collated  and  made  available  here;  and 
they  have  this  advantage  over  any  similar 
previous  collection,  that  in  making  them, 
M.  Bertaut  has  had  all  the  advantage  of  the 
fuller  knowledge  we  have  of  Napoleon  than 
any  previous  generation  has  had.  Precisely 
because  little  that  concerns  Napoleon  is  now 
unknown,  M.  Bertaut  has  been  able  to  make 
his  selections  from  the  great  mass  of  Na- 
poleon's utterances  in  such  a  way  as  to  pre- 
sent most  fully  and  clearly,  within  the  limits 
[xxii] 


Translators'  Preface 


of  space  determined  on,  the  workings  of 
Napoleon's  mind  —  to  get  whatever  light  on 
his  character  and  motives  his  own  words 
can  throw. 

This  work  was  well  received  by  the 
French  people  on  its  publication  shortly  be- 
fore the  outbreak  of  the  present  war;  and 
so  it  is  believed  it  will  be  of  interest  to 
Americans. 

In  translating,  the  effort  has  been  made 
to  present  Napoleon's  thought  in  its  English 
garb  so  as  to  convey  the  sense  that  Na- 
poleon's forceful,  nervous,  though  not  al- 
ways accurate  French,  conveys  to  French 
readers. 

In  the  notes,  nothing  more  has  been  at- 
tempted than  to  put  the  average  American 
reader  on  an  equal  footing,  as  to  allusion 
and  reference  to  matters  of  French  history 
or  French  literature  or  French  experience, 
with  the  average  French  reader,  as  we  may 
assume  him  to  be.  It  is  only  natural  to 
suppose  that  the  average  French  reader  has 
such  a  degree  of  familiarity  with  these  as 
will  enable  him  to  catch,  understandingly, 
Napoleon's  allusions  to  them;  just  as  the 
average  American  reader  would  be  able  to 
[  xxiii  ] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

catch,  understandingly,  equivalent  allusions 
and  reference  to  our  own  history  and  litera- 
ture. Hence  the  notes  are  confined,  with  at 
most  one  or  two  exceptions,  to  matters  of 
French  history  or  literature  or  national  ex- 
perience. As  to  allusions  to  men  or  things 
of  other  countries  or  peoples,  it  is  assumed 
that  the  average  American  reader  is  already 
on  an  equal  footing,  as  to  them,  with  the 
French  reader. 

It  has  been  attempted  to  give  to  American 
readers  just  what  M.  Bertaut  has  given  to 
his  countrymen. 

HERBERT  EDWARD  LAW 
CHARLES  LINCOLN  RHODES 


[  xxiv  ] 


THE  CHARACTER  OF 
NAPOLEON 


NAPOLEON  was  a  man  of  action. 
His  mind  was  cast  in  that  mould 
which  sees  in  events,  not  the  relations  they 
bear  to  each  other  as  parts  of  a  universe, 
but  their  possibilities  to  him  who  can  seize 
them  for  his  own  benefit.  His  was  not  a 
contemplative  mind;  he  neither  looked  for, 
nor  studied,  the  causes  of  things,  but  the 
effects.  He  has  therefore  written  no  phi- 
losophy, though  much  cynical  wisdom.  Nor 
did  he  speak  or  write  to  set  men  thinking, 
but  to  influence  their  actions. 

Though  a  man  of  action,  few  have  writ- 
ten more  than  he  did.  His  correspondence, 
in  thirty-two  volumes,  the  publication  of 
which  was  begun  in  1858,  is  only  a  part  of 
the  recorded  mass  of  ideas  which  came 
from  his  mind.  What  is  included  in  this 
little  book  is,  therefore,  but  the  merest  frag- 
ment of  what  there  was  to  choose  from, 
[xxv] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

But  because  Napoleon's  mind  and  character 
were  of  the  cast  and  turn  that  they  were, 
what  is  here  given  will  better  serve  its  pur- 
pose than  would  a  much  larger  measure  of 
any  other  man's  writings  in  regard  to  that 
man. 

Whoever  expects  to  find  consistency,  or 
continuity,  in  what  Napoleon  has  written, 
will  be  disappointed,  because  Napoleon  had 
no  profound  convictions  to  weave  them- 
selves like  golden  threads  in  the  web  of  his 
acts  or  his  words.  He  was  neither  a  phi- 
losopher developing  a  system  of  philosophy, 
nor  a  publicist  seeking  to  guide  the  course 
of  events  in  accordance  with  an  underlying 
and  permeating,  but  consistent  body  of  phi- 
losophical or  scientific  laws.  He  spoke  or 
wrote  for  the  immediate  effect  of  his  words, 
not  for  their  future,  or  ultimate  effect;  nor 
did  he  concern  himself  with  any  niceties  of 
consistency. 

Being  a  man  of  action,  he  was  constantly 
doing  things.  To  make  the  things  he  did 
best  serve  the  purpose  for  which  he  did 
them,  he  felt  called  on,  or  found  it  con- 
venient, to  give  some  reason  or  explanation 
for  doing  them.  He  was  guided  in  the 
[  xxvi  ] 


The  Character  of  Napoleon 

reason  or  explanation  he  gave,  not  by  his 
real  reason  or  purpose,  but  by  what  he 
thought  would  serve  him  best  at  the  time. 
Naturally,  there  could  be  neither  consist- 
ency nor  continuity  in  it.  There  was  in  it, 
however,  himself,  the  mirror  and  reflec- 
tion of  both  his  moral  and  his  mental  char- 
acter. 

It  is  because  of  this  characteristic  of  Na- 
poleon's utterances,  that  a  selection  from 
his  writings,  such  as  this  of  M.  Bertaut's, 
can  have,  and  does  have,  a  real  and  an  effec- 
tive value.  Few  great  men  can  be  appraised 
by  samples  of  their  writings.  This  is  par- 
ticularly true  of  those  whose  greatness 
consists  in  their  gift  of  ideas  or  good  works 
to  the  world.  But  Napoleon's  greatness  was 
in  his  genius  for  coordination,  for  accom- 
plishment. It  included,  of  course,  the  power 
to  vision  great  things  —  great  in  their  mag- 
nitude and  in  the  power  required  to  bring 
them  about.  But  this  accomplishment  add- 
ed nothing,  or  little  to  the  world's  store. 
His  combinations  were  of  what  already 
existed,  and  though  incomparably  great  and 
marvelous  exhibitions  of  the  power  of  the 
human  mind  to  do,  they  created  nothing; 
[  xxvii  ] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

and  though  he  conquered  half  of  Europe  he 
left  France  no  bigger  than  he  found  it. 

And  so  Napoleon's  writings  are  no 
measure  of  the  man,  because  they  neither 
express  his  thought,  nor  measure  his  great- 
ness. His  thought  was  expressed  in  action, 
and  his  greatness  in  accomplishment.  But 
his  writings  do  express  his  estimate  of 
moral  relationships  and  of  mankind.  Moral 
obligations  he  looked  on  as  superstitions, 
useful  in  holding  the  world  in  order  for  the 
benefit  of  himself  or  anyone  else,  who,  free 
from  such  superstitions,  was  able  to  exploit 
it.  His  estimate  of  mankind  was  of  crea- 
tures obeying  certain  impulses  and  suscep- 
tible to  certain  kinds  of  stimulus,  and 
therefore  very  suitable  for  the  use  and 
diversion  of  one,  who,  like  himself,  knew 
how  to  use  and  control  them. 

It  is  these  things,  these  qualities,  that  his 
writings  present.  Unconsciously  he  has  be- 
trayed himself  in  them.  What  was  said  for 
its  immediate  effect,  becomes  a  measure  of 
ulterior  motive.  Just  as  astronomers  de- 
duce from  the  aberrations  in  the  movements 
of  the  planets  the  laws  of  the  sidereal  uni- 
verse, so,  from  the  inconsistencies  and 
[  xxviii  ] 


The  Character  of  Napoleon 

contradictions  of  his  recorded  utterances 
can  be  clearly  deduced  the  dominating  mo- 
tives of  his  acts. 

The  great  defect  of  Napoleon's  character 
was  that  he  had  no  profound  convictions  of 
duty  or  obligation  or  right;  at  any  rate,  no 
profound  convictions  commensurate  with 
his  intellectual  powers.  Therefore  he  had 
nothing  to  guide  him  in  the  selection  of 
objects  for  accomplishment  except  the  lust 
and  greed  of  power  to  do,  which  grew  with 
the  growth,  through  exercise  and  expe- 
rience, of  that  power.  That  is  why  there  is 
so  much  that  is  inexplicable  particularly  in 
the  later  years  of  his  career.  He  is  ever 
urged  on  by  the  unsatisfied  power  of  accom- 
plishment, without  having  profound  moral 
convictions  to  guide  him  either  in  the  choice 
of  aim  or  means. 

In  this  selection  from  Napoleon's  record- 
ed utterances,  insignificant  and  fragmen- 
tary as  it  is  as  compared  with  the  whole 
volume  of  them,  can  be  seen  clearly  this 
lack  of  profound  convictions.  In  their  place 
are  cynical  half-truths,  clever  sophistry, 
self-deception,  because  the  depth  and  sound- 
ness of  the  moral  sense  in  mankind  is  un- 
[  xxix  ] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

realized  by  Napoleon.  It  is  because  his 
writings  do  not  represent  or  measure  his 
accomplishment,  but -do  represent  the  qual- 
ity of  his  moral  fiber,  that  Napoleon  can,  in 
this  respect,  be  appraised  by  sample;  and 
this  collection  which  M.  Bertaut  has  made 
is  an  excellent  sample. 

H.  E.  L. 

C.  L.  R. 


[  XXX  ] 


NAPOLEON  IN  HIS  OWN  WORDS 


NAPOLEON 

In  His  Own  Words 


I 

ON  SUCCESS 

A  PRINCE,   criticised  by  his  subjects, 
should  never  attempt  to  justify  him- 
self to  them. 

Collective  crimes  incriminate  no  one. 

The  code  of  health  for  nations  is  not 
that  for  individuals. 

A  sovereign  ought  always  to  confiscate 
publicity  for  his  own  profit. 

There  are  only  two  forces  that  unite  men 
—  fear  and  interest.  All  great  revolutions 
originate  in  fear,  for  the  play  of  interests 
does  not  lead  to  accomplishment. 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Audacity  succeeds  as  often  as  it  fails; 
in  life  it  has  an  even  chance. 

The  superior  man  is  never  in  anyone's 
way. 

Profit  by  the  favors  of  Fortune  while  her 
caprices  favor  you;  fear  only  that  she  will 
change  out  of  spite;  she  is  a  woman. 

Who  saves  his  country  violates  no  law. 
Men,  like  paintings,  need  a  favorable  day. 

There  are  so  many  laws  that  no  one  is 
safe  from  hanging. 

Success  is  the  most  convincing  talker  in 
the  world. 

As  a  rule  it  is  circumstances  that  make 
men. 

Impatience  is  a  great  obstacle  to  success; 
he  who  treats  everything  with  brusqueness 
gathers  nothing,  or  only  immature  fruit 
which  will  never  ripen. 

[2] 


On  Success 


Men  are  like  numerals  —  they  are  given 
value  by  their  position. 

Second-rate  men,  however  ambitious, 
have  only  commonplace  ideas. 

When  a  man  is  a  favorite  of  Fortune  she 
never  takes  him  unawares,  and,  however 
astonishing  her  favors  may  be,  she  finds 
him  ready. 

One  must  indeed  be  ignorant  of  the 
methods  of  genius  to  suppose  that  it  allows 
itself  to  be  cramped  by  forms.  Forms  are 
for  mediocrity,  and  it  is  fortunate  that  me- 
diocrity can  act  only  according  to  routine. 
Ability  takes  its  flight  unhindered. 

No  one  can  disguise  to  himself  the  fact 
that  a  dead  man  is  nothing  more  than  a  dead 
man,  and  a  living  man  of  the  slightest  pre- 
tensions is  stronger  than  the  dead  man's 
memory.  When  a  great  man  dies,  one  who 
has  rendered  high  service  to  his  country, 
the  first  feeling  experienced  is  one  of  satis- 
faction; a  weight  has  been  removed;  ambi- 
tions are  freed  (See  Note  i).  We  may 

[3] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

weep  a  year  afterwards  when  agitations  dis- 
tract the  country;  but  in  the  first  access  of 
feeling  there  is  not  even  a  tinge  of  regret; 
last  wishes  are  unconsidered. 

Conquerors  should  know  the  genius  and 
the  language  of  every  religion.  They  ought 
to  be  Moslems  in  Egypt  and  Catholics  in 
France,  to  the  extent,  at  least,  of  giving 
sympathetic  protection. 

The  publication  of  false  news  is  a  petty 
means  of  producing  important  effects,  but 
one  of  which  even  cool  heads  cannot  fore- 
tell the  exact  results,  since  each  one  to  whom 
such  news  comes  interprets  it  in  accordance 
with  his  prejudices  and  his  partisanship. 

In  the  eyes  of  empire  builders  men  are 
not  men,  but  instruments. 

Equality  exists  only  in  theory. 

The  secret  of  the  power  to  command  is  to 
be  strong,  because  in  strength  there  is 
neither  error  nor  illusion;  it  is  truth  in  all 
its  nakedness. 

[4] 


On  Success 


Men  are  more  easily  governed  through 
their  vices  than  through  their  virtues. 

Correctly  analyzed,  political  liberty  is  a 
convenient  fable  invented  by  governments 
to  lull  the  governed. 

The  torment  of  precautions  often  exceeds 
the  dangers  to  be  avoided.  It  is  sometimes 
better  to  abandon  one's  self  to  destiny. 

A  sovereign  obliged  to  respect  the  law 
may  be  contributing  to  the  loss  of  his  realm. 

A  legislature  is  a  serviceable  means  of 
obtaining  from  a  people  what  the  king 
might  not  dare  ask  of  them. 

Nothing  has  ever  been  established  except 
by  the  sword. 

Noisy  festivals  are  a  necessity.  Block- 
heads love  noise,  and  the  multitude  are 
blockheads. 

The  heart  of  a  statesman  should  be  in 
his  head. 

[5] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

A  new-born  government  must  dazzle. 

In  planning  one's  course  in  life,  we  should 
always  reserve  the  right  to  laugh  tomorrow 
at  the  ideas  of  yesterday. 

Never  depend  on  the  multitude,  full  of 
instability  and  whims;  always  take  precau- 
tions against  it. 

Events  all  hang  by  a  hair.  The  clever 
man  profits  by  everything,  neglecting  noth- 
ing that  may  give  him  any  advantage.  The 
less  clever,  by  slighting  some  seeming  trifle, 
loses  all. 


From  triumph  to  downfall  is  but  a  step. 
I  have  seen  a  trifle  decide  the  most  im- 
portant issues  in  the  gravest  affairs. 

It  is  only  by  prudence,  wisdom,  and 
dexterity,  that  great  ends  are  attained  and 
obstacles  overcome.  Without  these  quali- 
ties nothing  succeeds. 

There  are  different  ways  of  assassinating 
a  man  —  by  pistol,  sword,  poison,  or  moral 
[6] 


On  Success 


assassination.     They  are  the  same  in  their 
results  only  that  the  last  is  the  more  cruel. 

By  taking  for  your  justification  the  pre- 
tended principle  of  general  utility  you  can 
go  to  whatever  lengths  you  want. 

A  lie  is  useless,  since  it  deceives  but  once. 

Nature  in  creating  certain  men  designed 
them  for  subordinate  positions. 

Great  men  are  meteors,  who,  by  their 
burning,  light  the  world. 

If  aggressors  are  wrong  above,  they  are 
right  here  below. 

There  are  vices  and  virtues  of  circum- 
stances. 

Since  the  discovery  of  printing  the  in- 
telligent are  called  on  to  govern ;  and  those 
who  govern,  slave. 

He  who  knows  how  to  flatter  also  knows 
how  to  slander. 

[7] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

The  consummate  courtier  must  be  one 
who  scorns  the  object  of  his  flatteries,  and 
is  ever  ready  to  destroy  him. 

There  are  crises  where  the  good  of  the 
nation  requires  the  condemnation  of  the  in- 
nocent. 

Those  who  cannot  profit  by  circumstances 
are  ninnies. 

The  honest  are  so  easy  going  and  rogues 
so  alert,  that  it  is  often  necessary  to  employ 
rogues. 

Put  a  rogue  in  the  limelight  and  he  will 
act  like  an  honest  man. 

It  is  easier  to  destroy  than  to  restore 
confidence. 

The  man  fitted  for  affairs  and  authority 
never  considers  individuals,  but  things  and 
their  consequences. 

A  congress  of  the  powers  is  deceit  agreed 
on  between   diplomats  —  it  is  the  pen  of 
[8] 


On  Success 


Machiavelli  combined  with  the  scimitar  of 
Mahomet. 

Destiny  urges  me  to  a  goal  of  which  I 
am  ignorant.  Until  that  goal  is  attained  I 
am  invulnerable,  unassailable.  When  Des- 
tiny has  accomplished  her  purpose  in  me,  a 
fly  may  suffice  to  destroy  me. 

Necessity  dominates  inclination,  will,  and 
right. 

The  most  dangerous  counselor  is  self- 
love. 

To  be  a  successful  conqueror  one  must 
be  cruel. 

The  strong  man  is  the  one  who  is  able 
to  intercept  at  will  the  communication  be- 
tween the  senses  and  the  mind. 

Men  who  hesitate  never  succeed  in  their 
undertakings. 

One  never  mounts  so  high  as  when  one 
does  not  know  how  high  he  is  going. 

[9] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  PFords 

What  is  begun  in  feebleness  belongs  of 
right  to  audacity,  which  makes  it  legiti- 
mately its  own  by  seizing  it. 

There  is  nothing  so  hard  to  harness  as  a 
people  which  has  already  shaken  off  the 
pack  saddle. 

The  only  thing  to  be  done  with  those  one 
is  no  longer  able  to  recompense,  is  to  dis- 
grace them. 


II 

PSYCHOLOGY  AND  MORALS 

MEN  have  their  virtues  and  their  vices, 
their  heroisms  and  their  perversities ; 
men  are  neither  wholly  good  nor  wholly  bad, 
but  possess  and  practice  all  that  there  is  of 
good  and  bad  here  below.  Such  is  the 
general  rule.  Temperament,  education,  the 
accidents  of  life,  are  modifying  factors. 
Outside  of  this,  everything  is  ordered  ar- 
rangement, everything  is  chance.  Such  has 
been  my  rule  of  expectation  and  it  has 
usually  brought  me  success. 

Man  is  only  a  more  perfect  and  better 
reasoning  animal. 

Whatever  misanthropists  may  say,  in- 
grates  and  the  perverse  are  exceptions  in  the 
human  species. 

A  philosopher  has  contended  that  men 
are  born  wicked;  it  would  be  a  very 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

difficult  matter  and  a  useless  one  to.  deter- 
mine by  inquiry  whether  he  is  right.  But 
this  much  is  certain,  the  great  mass  of 
society  are  far  from  being  depraved;  for 
if  a  large  majority  were  criminal  or  in- 
clined to  break  the  laws,  where  would  the 
force  or  power  be  to  prevent  or  constrain 
them?  And  herein  is  the  real  blessing  of 
civilization,  because  this  happy  result  has  its 
origin  in  her  bosom,  growing  out  of  her  very 
nature. 

Man  seldom  acts  wholly  true  to  his  char- 
acter; he  yields  to  the  violence  of  his  feel- 
ings, or  is  carried  away  by  passion. 

Our  physical  qualities  are  developed  by 
our  dangers  and  our  needs. 

When  small  men  attempt  great  enter- 
prises, they  always  end  by  reducing  them  to 
the  level  of  their  mediocrity. 

What  power  there  is  in  imagination  —  in 
the  imagination  of  men !     The  English  sail- 
ors at  St.  Helena  did  not  know  me,  had 
never  seen  me,  only  heard  of  me,  yet  what 
[12] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

did  they  not  see  in  me,  and  what  did  they 
not  do  in  my  behalf !  And  the  same  strange 
spectacle  is  repeated  in  every  age,  in  every 
country,  in  every  century.  Such  is  fanat- 
icism. Yes,  imagination  governs  the  world. 

Man  loves  the  marvelous.  It  has  an  irre- 
sistible charm  for  him.  He  is  always  ready 
to  leave  that  with  which  he  is  familiar  to 
pursue  vain  inventions. 

What  are  we?  What  is  the  future?  What 
is  the  past?  What  magic  fluid  envelops 
us  and  hides  from  us  the  things  it  is  most 
important  for  us  to  know?  We  are  born, 
we  live,  and  we  die  in  the  midst  of  the 
marvelous. 

To  do  all  that  one  is  able  to  do,  is  to  be 
a  man ;  to  do  all  that  one  would  like  to  do, 
would  be  to  be  a  god. 

Man  achieves  in  life  only  by  commanding 
the  capabilities  nature  has  given  him,  or  by 
creating  them  within  himself  by  education 
and  by  knowing  how  to  profit  by  the  difficul- 
ties encountered. 

[13] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

It  is  said  that  when  we  know  the  type 
of  a  man  we  have  the  key  to  his  conduct. 
This  is  untrue.  A  thoroughly  honest  man 
may  do  an  evil  act;  or  another  an  unjust 
act,  without  being  wicked.  In  such  cases 
the  man  hardly  ever  acts  in  accordance  with 
his  type,  but  from  some  secret  purpose, 
which  up  to  that  moment  has  been  hid- 
den in  the  deepest  recesses  of  his  heart. 
It  is  a  mistake,  too,  to  say  that  the  face  is 
the  mirror  of  the  soul.  The  truth  is,  men 
are  very  hard  to  know,  and  yet,  not  to  be 
deceived,  we  must  judge  them  by  their  pres- 
ent actions,  but  for  the  present  only. 

A  mind  without  memory  is  a  fortress 
without  a  garrison. 

One  is  more  certain  to  influence  men,  to 
produce  more  effect  on  them,  by  absurdities 
than  by  sensible  ideas. 

It  is  not  true  that  men  never  change; 
they  change  for  the  worse,  as  well  as  for 
the  better.  It  is  not  true  they  are  ungrate- 
ful; more  often  the  benefactor  rates  his 
favors  higher  than  their  worth;  and  often 


Psychology  and  Morals 

too  he  does  not  allow  for  circumstances.  If 
few  men  have  the  moral  force  to  resist 
impulses,  most  men  do  carry  within  them- 
selves the  germs  of  virtues  as  well  as  of 
vices,  of  heroism  as  well  as  of  cowardice. 
Such  is  human  nature  —  education  and  cir- 
cumstances do  the  rest. 

Ordinarily  men  exercise  their  memory 
much  more  than  their  judgment. 

Men  are  sheep,  they  always  follow  the 
leader. 

How  many  really  capable  men  are  chil- 
dren more  than  once  during  the  day! 

When  we  know  our  moral  weakness  we 
ought  to  know  how  to  care  for  our  soul  as 
we  know  how  to  care  for  our  leg  or  arm. 

I  am  of  the  opinion  that  the  good  or  bad 
conduct  of  a  child  depends  entirely  on  its 
mother. 

There  is  nothing  so  imperious  as  feeble- 
ness which  feels  itself  supported  by  force. 

[15] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

The  superior  man  is  not  by  nature  impres- 
sionable. We  praise  him,  we  blame  him; 
it  matters  little  to  him.  It  is  to  his  own 
judgment  that  he  listens. 

The  shortcomings  of  children  are  often 
the  result  of  the  bad  education  they  have 
received  from  their  parents. 

One  does  well  only  that  which  one  does 
one's  self. 

Good  sense  makes  men  capable.  Self- 
respect  is  the  breeze  which  swells  the  sails 
and  wafts  their  barks  into  port. 

Death  is  a  dreamless  sleep. 

True  character  stands  the  test  of  emer- 
gencies. Do  not  be  mistaken,  it  is  weak- 
ness from  which  the  awakening  is  rude. 

Life  is  a  fleeting  dream  that  loses  itself. 

Life  is  strewn  with  so  many  dangers,  and 
can  be  the  source  of  so  many  misfortunes, 
that  death  is  not  the  greatest  of  them. 
[16] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

How  many  seemingly  impossible  things 
have  been  accomplished  by  resolute  men  be- 
cause they  had  to  do,  or  die. 

The  private  life  of  a  man  is  a  light  by 
which  one  may  instructively  read. 

Men  are  greedy  for  emotion;  their  en- 
thusiasm is  his  who  can  cleverly  arouse  it. 

There  is  no  strength  without  skill. 

A  man.  becomes  the  creature  of  his  uni- 
form. 

With  audacity  one  can  undertake  any- 
thing, but  not  do  everything. 

Interminable  matters  are  those  that  pre- 
sent no  difficulties. 

If  success  were  not  a  chimera,  it  would 
not  be  so  alluring. 

The  fool  has  one  great  advantage  over  a 
man  of  sense  —  he  is  always  satisfied  with 
himself. 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Force  is  never  anything  but  force,  en- 
thusiasm never  anything  but  enthusiasm. 
But  persuasiveness  endures  and  imprints 
itself  on  the  heart. 

We  only  believe  the  things  we  want  to 
believe. 

To  be  believed,  make  the  truth  unbeliev- 
able. 

There  are  some  people  who  behave 
decently  only  toward  their  enemies. 

Simpletons  talk  of  the  past,  wise  men  of 
the  present,  and  fools  of  the  future. 

Patriotism  is  the  first  of  virtues. 

The  ambition  to  rule  over  other  minds 
is  the  strongest  of  passions. 

Most  sentiments   are  traditions. 

The  man  who  practices  virtue  only  in  the 
hope  of  gaining  reputation,  is  toying  with 
vice. 


Psychology  and  Morals 

A  man  with  neither  courage  nor  bravery 
is  a  mere  thing. 

I  have  no  regard  for  those  who  affect  to 
despise  death;  the  important  thing  is  to 
know  how  to  endure  the  inevitable. 

Each  hour  wasted  in  youth  is  a  hazard 
of  misfortune  taken  for  the  future. 

The  superior  man  is  undisturbed ;  praised 
or  blamed,  he  goes  on. 

In  a  narrow  sphere  great  men  are  blun- 
derers. 

Self-interest  is  the  key  to  commonplace 
actions. 

Severity  presumes  more  faults  than  it 
represses. 

Strong  souls  resist  pleasures  of  the  senses 
as  mariners  shun  reefs. 

To  debate  in  danger  is  to  hold  back  in  the 
traces. 

[19] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Adversity  is  the  midwife  of  genius. 

From  wit  to  good  sense  is  farther  than 
one  thinks. 

Nothing  is  more  difficult  than  to  decide. 

A  stroke  of  fate  is  like  striking  a  money 
balance;  it  indicates  a  man's  real  worth. 

Nothing  that  degrades  a  man  is  useful 
for  long. 

Happiness  grows  out  of  circumstances; 
felicity  out  of  affections. 

There  is  nothing  noble  that  is  not  great; 
greatness  and  immensity  make  us  overlook 
many  defects. 

Chance  takes  account  of  all  our  follies. 

Judgment  matures  as  well  in  success  as 
in  misfortunes. 

Time  is  a  necessary  element.    When  Ar- 
chimedes offered  to  raise  the  world   with 
[20] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

a  lever  and  fulcrum,  he  required  time.    God 
took  seven  days  to  create  the  universe. 

Nothing  is  so  rare  as  steadfast  devotion. 

Intelligence  precedes  force.  Force  itself 
is  nothing  without  intelligence.  In  the 
heroic  age  the  leader  was  the  strongest  man ; 
with  civilization  he  has  become  the  most 
intelligent  of  the  brave. 

In  pardoning  we  rise  above  those  who 
insult  us. 

Of  what  blunders  are  not  the  vanity  and 
self  love  of  an  ignorant  man  capable. 

The  man  of  projects  is  always  right  in 
drawing-rooms. 

No  man  has  friends;  it  is  his  good 
fortune  that  has. 

The  fire  of  youth,  the  pride  of  blood,  the 
death  of  hope,  all  produce  enthusiasts  and 
martyrs  and  bring  forth  courageous  and 
desperate  decisions. 

[21] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Temptation  reaches  the  heart  through 
the  eye;  we  are  always  tempted  to  yield  to 
what  we  admire. 

It  is  asked  why  misfortunes  feared  often 
affect  us  more  than  those  actually  experi- 
enced. It  is  because,  in  imagination  as  in 
mathematics,  we  cannot  measure  the  power 
of  the  unknown. 

When  one  has  never  had  reverses,  he  is 
due  to  have  them  proportionate  to  his  good 
fortune. 

How  far  short  men  fall  from  equaling 
their  pretensions!  Do  they  always  know, 
themselves,  what  they  are? 

Genius  does  not  transmit  itself  from  pa- 
rent to  son.  There  has  never  been,  so  far  as 
I  know,  one  single  instance  in  all  history  of 
two  great  poets,  two  great  mathematicians, 
two  great  conquerors,  two  great  monarchs, 
one  of  whom  was  a  son  of  the  other. 

Genius  is  fire  from  heaven;  but  it  rarely 
finds  a  vessel  ready  to  receive  it. 

[22] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

Morality  is  in  itself  a  complete  code. 

True  happiness,  the  only  true  strength, 
all  the  consolations  of  mankind  are  in 
religion  and  morality.  Hence  all  moral 
religions  are  beautiful.  Aside  from  dogmas 
more  or  less  absurd,  which,  to  understand, 
we  must  know  the  people  among  whom 
they  originated,  what  is  there  in  the  Vedas, 
the  Koran,  the  old  Testament,  in  Confucius, 
in  them  all  in  a  word?  a  pure  morality  — 
that  is  to  say,  protection  to  the  weak,  respect 
for  the  laws  of  the  country,  and  a  belief  in 
one  God.  But  the  Gospel  alone  offers  mo- 
rality freed  from  absurdities. 

One  must  learn  to  forgive  and  not  to  hold 
a  hostile,  bitter  attitude  of  mind,  which 
offends  those  about  us  and  prevents  us 
from  enjoying  ourselves ;  one  must  recognize 
human  shortcomings  and  adjust  himself  to 
them  rather  than  to  be  constantly  finding 
fault  with  them. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  prohibit  or  encour- 
age oddities  of  conduct  which  are  not 
harmful. 

[23] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

I  despise  ingratitude  as  the  most  infamous 
defect  of  the  heart. 

Moralizing  is  very  often  only  a  disguise 
for  slander. 

The  best  way  to  keep  one's  word  is  not 
to  give  it. 

Wounds  given  honor  never  heal;  they 
destroy  the  moral  fiber. 

It  is  not  to  be  disputed  that  in  the  mar- 
riage relation  the  oriental  family  is  entirely 
different  from  the  occidental  family.  Moral 
codes  therefore  are  not  universal.  Man  is 
the  minister  of  Nature,  and  social  relations 
follow  racial  differences. 

We  recognize  an  honest  man  by  his  con- 
duct toward  his  wife,  his  family,  and  his 
servants. 

Has  a  man  the  right  to  kill  him- 
self? Yes,  if  his  death  will  injure  no  one, 
and  life  is  a  misfortune  to  him.  When  is 
life  a  misfortune  to  a  man?  When  it  offers 

[24] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

him  nothing  but  suffering  and  sorrow;  but 
as  suffering  and  sorrow  change  constantly, 
there  is  no  moment  in  life  when  a  man  has 
the  right  to  kill  himself,  except  at  the 
moment  of  his  death ;  since  then,  only,  is  the 
proof  forthcoming  that  his  life  has  been 
only  a  web  of  misfortunes  and  suffering. 
The  man  who,  succumbing  to  the  weight  of 
present  ills,  seeks  death,  does  an  injustice 
to  himself,  yielding  in  despair  and  feeble- 
ness to  the  fantasy  of  the  moment,  to  which 
he  sacrifices  all  the  possibilities  of  the  future. 

There  are  rogues  sufficiently  roguish  to 
act  like  honest  men. 

Suicide  is  the  act  of  a  gambler  who  has 
lost  everything,  or  of  a  ruined  prodigal.  It 
has  always  been  a  maxim  with  me  that  a 
man  showed  more  true  courage  in  support- 
ing the  ills  of  life  than  by  ending  it. 

True  heroism  consists  in  rising  superior 
to  misfortune. 

The  Grenadier  Gobin  committed  suicide 
for  love.  The  circumstances  offered  a  good 

[25] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

opportunity.  It  was  the  second  event  of  the 
kind  that  had  happened  in  the  corps  within 
a  month.  The  First  Consul  directed  that 
there  should  be  included  in  the  orders  to 
the  Guard :  "  That  a  soldier  ought  to  over- 
come the  melancholy  and  bitterness  of  hope- 
less passion;  there  is  as  much  true  courage 
in  suffering  with  constancy  the  despair  of 
the  soul,  as  in  standing  firm  under  the  fire 
of  a  battery;  to  surrender  to  disappointment 
without  resisting,  to  commit  suicide  to 
escape  from  it,  is  to  abandon  the  field  of 
battle  without  having  gained  the  victory/' 

To  give  suitably  is  to  honor ;  to  give  much 
is  to  corrupt 

When  a  man  has  no  courage,  he  neces- 
sarily lacks  head,  and  is  unfit  to  command 
either  himself  or  others. 

The  human  family  has  two  virtues  which 
we  cannot  value  too  highly  —  courage  in 
man,  and  modesty  in  woman. 

Let  the  night  dissipate  the  injuries  of  the 
day. 

[26] 


Psychology  and  Morals 

There  is  no  compromise  with  honor. 

So  much  the  worse  for  those  who  do  not 
believe  in  virtue. 


Ill 

LOVE    AND    MARRIAGE 

FAMILY  ties  have  always  seemed  to  me 
sacred.     I  have  never  been  able  to  be- 
lieve that  we  can  break  them  without  dis- 
honor, and   failing  in  that  which  is  most 
sacred  to  man. 

In  love  the  only  safety  is  in  flight. 

Love  is  the  occupation  of  the  idle,  the 
distraction  of  the  soldier,  the  danger  of  the 
monarch. 

Marriage  ought  not  to  be  permitted 
between  those  who  have  not  known  each 
other  more  than  six  months. 

The  civil  magistrate  who  would  make  im- 
pressive the  woman's  promise  of  obedience 
and  fidelity,  ought  to  have  a  formulary.  It 
ought  to  be  emphasized  that  in  leaving  the 
protection  of  the  family  the  woman  passes 

[28] 


Love  and  Marriage 


under  that  of  her  husband.  Magistrates 
perform  the  marriage  ceremony  without 
any  solemnity.  It  altogether  lacks  impres- 
siveness.  It  should  be  given  a  moral  quality. 
Observe  the  priests;  they  preach  a  sermon. 
Even  if  it  is  not  heard  by  the  bridal  couple 
wholly  occupied  with  other  things,  it  is  by 
the  others  present. 

Marriage  is  without  doubt  the  perfect 
social  state. 

Love  is  always  the  occupation  of  the  idle 
ranks  of  society. 

In  great  crises  it  is  the  portion  of  wives 
to  make  reverses  supportable. 

We  will  hear  nothing  in  derogation  of 
women,  we  peoples  of  the  Occident.  We 
hold  them,  which  is  a  great  mistake,  as  being 
almost  our  own  equals.  The  peoples  of  the 
orient  are  wiser  and  juster  than  we.  They 
have  declared  them  the  natural  property  of 
man.  And,  in  effect,  Nature  has  made  them 
our  slaves.  It  is  only  because  of  our  fool- 
ishness that  they  have  dared  to  pretend  to 

[29] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

be  our  equals.  They  abuse  their  privileges 
in  order  to  corrupt  and  rule  us.  For  one 
who  inspires  us  to  good,  there  are  a  hundred 
who  lead  us  into  folly. 

Woman  was  given  to  man  in  order  that 
there  might  be  children.  Now  one  woman 
alone  cannot  suffice  a  man  for  that  purpose ; 
she  cannot  be  his  wife  while  she  is  nursing; 
she  cannot  be  his  wife  while  she  is  sick;  she 
ceases  to  be  his  wife  when  she  is  no  longer 
able  to  bear  him  children.  Man,  whom 
Nature  has  limited  neither  by  age  nor  by 
any  of  these  inconveniences,  ought  therefore 
to  have  several  wives. 

If  a  man  is  unfaithful  to  his  wife,  con- 
fesses it  and  repents  of  it,  no  consequences 
result.  The  wife  is  angry,  forgives,  is 
reconciled,  sometimes  exacting  something 
as  the  price  of  reconciliation.  It  is  a  differ- 
ent matter  if  the  infidelity  is  the  wife's.  She 
will  confess  and  repent  of  it  in  vain,  for 
who  will  guarantee  that  no  consequences 
will  follow?  The  injury  is  irreparable.  It 
cannot  be  and  ought  not  to  be  condoned. 
It  is  therefore  only  the  failure  of  judgment, 

[30] 


Love  and  Marriage 


of  general  recognition  and  the  defect  of 
education,  which  makes  it  possible  for  a 
woman  to  believe  herself  equal  in  all  things 
to  her  husband.  There  is  however  nothing 
dishonoring  in  the  difference.  Each  have 
their  privileges  and  their  obligations.  Your 
privileges,  ladies,  are  beauty,  grace,  and 
seductive  power;  your  obligations,  depend- 
ence and  submission. 

And  moreover  of  what  can  you  complain 
after  all?  Have  we  not  accorded  you  a 
soul?  You  know  there  are  compensations 
in  philosophy.  You  pretend  to  equality? 
But  that  is  foolishness.  Woman  is  our 
property ;  we  are  not  hers,  for  she  bears  us 
children  but  we  do  not  bear  her  any.  She 
is  therefore  the  man's  property  as  the  fruit 
tree  is  the  gardener's. 

A  beautiful  woman  appeals  to  the  eye;  a 
good  woman  appeals  to  the  heart.  One  is 
a  jewel,  the  other  a  treasure. 

The  man  who  allows  himself  to  be  gov- 
erned entirely  by  his  wife  is  neither  himself 
nor  his  wife;  he  is  nothing. 

[313 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

I  firmly  belive  that  love  does  more  harm 
than  good,  and  that  it  would  be  a  blessing 
from  divine  providence,  if  it  were  banished 
and  men  delivered  from  it. 

The  most  important  woman  in  the  world, 
living  or  dead,  is  the  one  who  has  borne  the 
most  children. 

How  many  men  are  culpable  only  because 
of  their  weakness  for  women ! 

Marriage,  to  be  happy,  requires  a  constant 
exchange  of  confidences. 

Marriage  finds  no  counterpart  in  nature. 

A  woman  needs  six  months  of  Paris  to 
know  what  is  hers  to  have,  and  her  realm. 

Love  is  folly  committed  by  two. 

Marriage  is  not  always  the  result  of 
love.  Most  young  people  marry  in  order 
to  secure  independence  and  a  position,  and 
take  spouses  who  do  not  suit  them  in  any 
way.  The  law  ought  to  provide  a  remedy  at 

[32] 


Love  and  Marriage 


the  moment  they  realize  they  have  been  en- 
tirely mistaken.  But  this  indulgence  ought 
to  favor  neither  imprudence  nor  passion.  A 
woman  should  be  permitted  but  one  divorce, 
and  should  not  be  allowed  to  remarry  for 
five  years  afterwards.  There  should  be  no 
divorce  after  ten  years  of  marriage. 

The  life  filled  with  love  is  the  guarantee 
of  a  happy  home.  It  assures  the  honor  of 
the  wife,  and  the  respect  of  the  husband. 
It  maintains  confidence  and  good  relations. 

The  mental  inferiority  of  women,  the 
instability  of  their  ideas,  their  destiny  in 
the  social  order,  the  necessity  of  inspiring 
in  them  a  constant  submission,  and  a  soft 
and  complaisant  charity  —  all  these  make 
the  yoke  of  religion  indispensable. 

Women,  when  they  are  bad,  are  worse 
than  men,  and  more  disposed  to  commit 
crime.  When  the  sex,  which  is  sweet  by 
inheritance,  once  becomes  degraded,  it 
falls  into  greater  excesses  than  the  other. 
Women  are  always  either  much  better  or 
much  worse  than  men. 

[33] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

I  do  not  believe  it  is  in  our  nature  to  love 
impartially.  We  deceive  ourselves  when  we 
think  we  can  love  two  beings,  even  our  own 
children,  equally.  There  is  always  a  dom- 
inant affection. 

A  man  ought  never  to  quarrel  with  a 
woman;  he  should  hear  her  unreason  in 
silence. 


IV 

THINGS  POLITICAL 

IN  politics  nothing  is  immutable.     Events 
carry  within  them  an  invincible  power. 
The  unwise  destroy  themselves  in  resistance. 
The  skillful  accept  events,  take  strong  hold 
of  them  and  direct  them. 

The  great  difficulty  with  politics  is,  that 
there  are  no  established  principles. 

If,  for  the  sound  and  sagacious  policies 
appropriate  to  a  great  nation  having  pro- 
found destinies  to  fulfill,-  the  demagoguery 
of  a  party  is  substituted  when  powerful 
enemies  confront  her,  nothing  effectual  will 
be  accomplished. 

The  most  dangerous  power  is  an  abstract 
sentiment  in  control  of  the  public  authority. 

It  is  only  with  prudence,  sagacity,  and 
much  dexterity  that  great  aims  are  ac- 

[35] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

complished,   and  all  obstacles  surmounted. 
Otherwise  nothing  is  accomplished. 

Power  is  most  dangerous  when  the  public 
authority  is  obsessed  by  an  abstract  senti- 
ment. 

Government  is  difficult  when  one  is  con- 
scientious. 

One  may  lose  popularity  by  a  peccadillo 
as  well  as  by  a  stroke  of  statesmanship; 
when  one  knows  the  art  of  reigning,  one 
stakes  his  credit  only  on  careful  consider- 
ation. 

What  constitutes  popularity?  Good 
natured  complaisance?  Who  was  more 
popular,  more  complaisant  than  the  unfor- 
tunate Louis  xvi?  But  what  was  his  fate? 
He  perished!  The  truth  is  that  one  ought 
to  serve  his  people  worthily,  and  not  strive 
solely  to  please  them.  The  best  way  to  gain 
a  people  is  to  do  that  which  is  best  for  them. 
Nothing  is  more  dangerous  than  to  flatter 
a  people.  If  it  does  not  get  what  it  wants 
immediately,  it  is  irritated  and  thinks  that 

[36] 


Things  Political 


promises  have  not  been  kept;  and  if  then  it 
is  resisted,  it  hates  so  much  the  more  as  it 
feels  itself  deceived. 

One  does  not  govern  a  nation  by  half- 
measures.  In  all  public  acts  force,  order, 
and  consistency  are  necessary. 

The  duties  of  the  head  of  the  nation  are 
not  those  of  the  people.  The  duty  of  the 
people  is  to  obey  the  laws. 

The  thing  to  avoid  is  not  so  much  error 
as  self-contradiction.  It  is  especially  by 
the  latter  that  authority  loses  its  force. 

Lead  the  ideas  of  your  time  and  they  will 
accompany  and  support  you;  fall  behind 
them  and  they  drag  you  along  with  them; 
oppose  them  and  they  will  overwhelm  you. 

There  is  no  such  thing  as  an  absolute 
despotism;  it  is  only  relative.  A  man  can- 
not wholly  free  himself  from  obligation  to 
his  fellows.  A  sultan  who  cut  off  heads 
from  caprice,  would  quickly  lose  his  own 
in  the  same  way.  Excesses  tend  to  check 

[37] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

themselves  by  reason  of  their  own  violence. 
What  the  ocean  gains  in  one  place  it  loses 
in  another. 

We  are  made  weak  both  by  idleness  and 
distrust  of  ourselves.  Unfortunate,  indeed, 
is  he  who  suffers  from  both.  If  he  is  a 
mere  individual  he  becomes  nothing;  if  he 
is  a  king  he  is  lost. 

A  prince  should  suspect  everything. 

In  politics,  an  absurdity  is  not  an  impedi- 
ment. 

One  who  wants  to  be  a  force  in  govern- 
ment must  be  ready  to  put  himself  in  peril; 
if  need  be,  to  dare  assassination. 

Government  must  be  administered  for 
the  general  good  without  worrying  about 
whether  it  pleases  this  or  that  individual. 
If  one  attempts  a  middle  course,  serving 
each  party,  he  attempts  an  absurd  equili- 
brium, arouses  dissatisfaction  in  the  great 
majority  where  good  sense  is  always  found; 
for  it  is  the  acquiescence  of  the  great  body 

[38] 


Things  Political 


of    the   people   that   makes   public   opinion 
sovereign. 

Public  opinion  is  the  thermometer  a 
monarch  should  constantly  consult. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  rigorous 
authority  and  justice  are  the  kindness  of 
kings.  The  kindness  of  kings  and  that  of 
individuals  are  not  to  be  confounded. 

I  do  not  allow  myself  to  be  imposed  upon 
by  reputations.  Former  services  I  consider 
only  a  school  in  which  one  ought  to  have 
learned  to  serve  better.  Within  a  short  time 
I  have  become  an  old  administrator.  The 
most  difficult  art  is  not  in  the  choice  of  men, 
but  in  giving  to  the  men  chosen  the  highest 
service  of  which  they  are  capable. 

The  great  orators  who  sway  assemblies 
by  the  brilliancy  of  their  speech,  are  in  gen- 
eral very  ordinary  statesmen.  It  is  useless 
to  contend  with  them  by  words;  they  will 
always  have  more  sonorous  phrases  than 
yours.  The  thing  to  do  is  to  meet  their 
glibness  with  precise,  logical  reasoning. 

[39] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

Their  strength  is  in  vagueness.  One  must 
pin  them  down  to  facts.  This  method  is 
death  to  their  pretensions. 

Immorality  is,  without  possibility  of  con- 
tradiction, the  worst  thing  that  can  be  found 
in  a  sovereign,  for  the  reason  that  it  at  once 
makes  immorality  fashionable.  It  is  emu- 
lated as  a  point  of  honor.  It  fortifies  all 
vices,  strikes  at  all  virtue,  infects  society 
with  a  veritable  plague.  It  is  the  scourge  of 
a  nation. 

I  would  conceive  a  bad  opinion  of  a  gov- 
ernment all  of  whose  edicts  were  drafted  in 
a  literary  style.  The  true  art  is  that  each 
edict  have  the  style  and  character  of  the 
class  it  affects. 

Wherever  there  is  a  source  of  incontest- 
able power,  men  will  be  found  to  draw  it  to 
themselves. 

France  is  the  country  where  officials  have 
the  least  influence.  To  rely  on  them  is  to 
build  on  sand.  Great  things  are  done  in 
France  only  by  relying  on  the  people.  More- 

[40] 


Things  Political 


over  a  government  ought  to  seek  its  support 
from  that  very  source. 

Posterity  alone  rightly  judges  kings.  Pos- 
terity alone  has  the  right  to  accord  or  with- 
hold honors. 

Democracy  exalts  sovereignty;  but  aris- 
tocracy alone  maintains  it. 

The  trade  of  being  a  king  is  not  child's 
play  in  this  century.  It  is  inevitable  that 
the  manners  of  kings  should  change  with 
the  manners  of  the  people.  In  order  to  have 
the  right  to  the  services  of  the  people,  it  is 
necessary  to  begin  by  serving  them  well. 

We  must  distinguish  between  the  acts 
of  a  sovereign,  as  such,  and  those  of  an 
individual  who  is  unconstrained  as  to  his 
opinions.  State  policy  permits,  and  even 
requires,  in  the  one,  what  should  be  without 
excuse  in  the  other. 

A  government  in  appealing  to  the  intelli- 
gence of  all  its  citizens,  acts  in  its  own 
interest  and  strengthens  the  social  edifice; 

[41] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

every  citizen  ought  to  be  interested  in  the 
security  of  the  state. 

A  throne  is  only  a  bench  covered  with 
velvet. 

Obedience  to  public  authority  ought  not 
to  be  based  either  on  ignorance  or  stupidity. 

No  constitution  continues  unchanged ; 
the  change  it  undergoes  depends  on  men 
and  circumstances.  If  there  are  objections 
to  an  overstrong  government,  there  are  still 
more  to  a  weak  one.  Every  day  it  is  con- 
strained to  violate  positive  laws ;  there  is  no 
other  way  to  do.  Without  doing  it,  it  is 
impossible  to  get  along. 

I  had  Baumont  and  two  hundred  others 
in  the  west  arrested  as  grain  smugglers. 
There  was  not  a  single  minister  who  might 
not  have  been  accused.  The  government 
could  not  be  arbitrary,  because  it  did  not 
have  the  support  of  a  feudal  system,  a  class 
financially  interested  in  it,  nor  prejudices. 
The  day  the  government  should  become 
arbitrary  it  would  lose  the  support  of  public 

[42] 


Things  Political 


opinion  and  would  be  lost.  There  was  need 
of  an  extraordinary  council  for  these  un- 
foreseen cases.  The  senate  served  very 
well. 

I  complained  of  wrongs  done  a  French- 
man at  Venice,  and  demanded  reparation. 
They  urged  the  laws  as  a  difficulty  in  the 
way.  I  threatened  to  destroy  them  and 
pointed  out  that  they  had  the  Council  of 
Ten  and  the  Judges  of  the  Inquisition,  etc. 
The  Judges  of  the  Inquisition  easily  found 
a  way  to  meet  my  demands. 

The  true  policy  of  a  government  is  to 
make  use  of  aristocracy,  but  under  the 
forms  and  in  the  spirit  of  democracy. 

A  form  of  government  which  is  not  the 
result  of  a  long  series  of  emergencies,  of 
misfortunes,  and  of  efforts  and  attempts  on 
the  part  of  a  people,  will  never  take  very 
deep  root. 

A  prince  should  never  allow  the  spirit  of 
intrigue  and  faction  to  triumph  over  his 
authority,  or  a  mean  spirit  of  unsteadiness 

[43] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

and  opposition  to  discredit  that  fundamental 
sovereignty  which  is  the  foundation  of 
social  order  and  the  true  source  of  all  that 
benefits  a  people. 

The  old  patched  monarchies  will  last  only 
as  long  as  the  people  do  not  realize  their 
own  power.  Such  structures  always  perish 
through  their  foundations. 

Legislation  is  a  weapon  that  a  govern- 
ment ought  always  to  use  when  national 
prosperity  is  in  danger. 

The  men  who  have  changed  the  universe 
have  never  accomplished  it  by  changing 
officials  but  always  by  inspiring  the  people. 

Prudence  is  good  when  one  has  the  choice 
of  means.  When  one  hasn't,  it  is  daring 
which  achieves  success. 

Republics  are  not  to  be  made  from  old 
monarchies. 

In  revolutions  everything  is  speedily  for- 
gotten. The  good  that  you  do  today  will 
be  forgotten  tomorrow.  Conditions  once 

[44] 


Things  Political 


changed,  gratitude,  friendship,  relationship 
—  all  ties  are  broken,  and  each  person  seeks 
his  own  interest. 

In  national  crises,  the  reasonable  man  is 
the  one  who  is  considered  feeble,  because 
passion  resembles  force. 

A  man  at  the  head  of  a  struggling  party 
in  civil  turmoil  is  called  a  rebel  chief.  But 
when  he  has  succeeded,  when  he  has  done 
great  deeds,  and  established  his  country  and 
himself,  he  is  given  the  name  of  general,  and 
sovereign,  and  that  sort  of  thing.  It  is 
success  that  gives  him  the  title.  If  he  had 
been  unfortunate  he  would  have  continued 
to  be  a  rebel  chief,  and  perhaps  have  per- 
ished on  the  scaffold.  It  is  success  which 
makes  men  great. 

Anarchy  invariably  leads  to  arbitrary 
government. 

Provisional  governments  placed  in  diffi- 
cult circumstances  ought  to  concern  them- 
selves exclusively  with  the  public  safety  and 
the  interests  of  the  country. 

[45] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

It  is  inevitable  that  a  government  which 
follows  the  storms  of  revolution  and  which 
is  menaced  by  enemies  from  without  and 
disturbed  by  intrigue  within,  will  be  some- 
what harsh. 

Insurrection  and  the  emigration  of  the 
nobility  are  diseases  of  the  skin.  Terrorism 
is  an  internal  disease. 

In  revolutions,  like  attracts  like,  as  it  does 
in  the  physical  world. 

A  universal  rule:  Never  a  revolution 
without  terror. 

Among  nations  and  in  revolutions,  aris- 
tocracy always  exists.  If  you  attempt  to 
get  rid  of  it  by  destroying  the  nobility,  it 
immediately  re-establishes  itself  among  the 
rich  and  powerful  families  of  the  third 
estate.  Destroy  it  there,  and  it  survives  and 
takes  refuge  among  the  leaders  of  workmen 
and  of  the  people.  A  prince  gains  nothing 
by  this  shifting  of  aristocracy.  On  the  con- 
trary he  re-establishes  stable  conditions  by 
permitting  it  to  continue  as  it  is,  readjust- 

[46] 


Things  Political 


ing,    however,   the   old   order   to   the   new 
principles. 

With  good  fortune  one  renders  a  people 
glorious ;  it  requires  much  firmness  to  make 
them  happy. 

Sooner  or  later  the  public  interests  over- 
come minor  prejudices. 

In  order  that  a  people  may  be  free,  it  is 
necessary  that  the  governed  be  sages,  and 
those  who  govern,  gods. 

Incidents  should  not  govern  state  pol- 
icies; but  state  policies,  incidents. 

Neutrality  consists  in  having  equal 
weights  and  measures  for  each.  In  state- 
craft it  is  nonsense,  for  our  interest  always 
lies  with  the  triumph  of  one  or  the  other. 

Constitutions  are  good  only  as  we  make 
progress  under  them. 

The  policy  which  is  not  moral  must  glo- 
rify morality. 

[47] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Display  is  to  power  what  ceremony  is  to 
religion. 

Commerce  unites  men.  Whatever  unites 
men  leads  them  to  act  together.  Commerce 
is  therefore  essentially  dangerous  to  arbi- 
trary authority. 

One  may  risk  a  coup  d'etat  to  gain  power, 
but  never  to  strengthen  it;  for  in  that  case 
the  supreme  authority  is  attacked. 

The  laws  of  circumstance  are  abolished 
by  new  circumstances. 

A  good  philosopher  makes  a  bad  citizen. 

A  man  will  fight  harder  for  his  interests 
than  for  his  rights. 

To  win  confidence  in  advance  of  success, 
is  the  most  difficult  political  accomplish- 
ment. 

When  deplorable  weakness  and  indecision 
manifest  themselves  in  the  counsels  of 
power;  when,  yielding  in  turn  to  the  influ- 

[48] 


Things  Political 


ence  of  opposing  parties,  and  living  from 
day  to  day  without  fixed  plans  or  a  deter- 
mined policy,  it  has  shown  the  completeness 
of  its  incapacity,  and  when  the  most  mod- 
erate citizens  are  forced  to  admit  that  the 
state  is  no  longer  governed ;  when,  in  fact, 
to  its  incompetency  the  administration  suf- 
fers, what  in  the  eyes  of  a  proud  people  is 
the  greatest  humiliation  possible,  I  mean  to 
say  the  contempt  of  foreign  nations,  then 
a  vague  inquietude  spreads  throughout  the 
community,  concern  for  national  preserva- 
tion arises,  and,  turning  its  gaze  on  itself, 
it  seems  to  search  for  a  man  able  to  save  it. 
Such  a  tutelary  genius  (See  Note  2)  every 
numerous  nation  contains  within  itself, 
though  sometimes  he  is  slow  in  appearing. 
In  truth,  it  is  not  sufficient  that  he  exists, 
he  must  be  known  —  he  must  know  himself. 
Until  then  all  efforts  are  vain,  all  expedients 
fail.  The  mere  inertia  of  the  majority 
saves  the  phantom  government,  and,  in  spite 
of  its  incapacity  and  weakness,  the  efforts 
of  its  enemies  do  not  prevail  against  it.  But 
let  this  liberator,  impatiently  awaited,  sud- 
denly give  a  sign  of  his  existence,  the 
national  instinct  at  once  divines  him  and 

[49] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

calls  him.  Obstacles  vanish  before  him,  and 
the  whole  nation,  as  by  a  common  impulse, 
following  in  his  train  seems  to  say :  There 
is  the  man ! 

If  obedience  is  the  result  of  the  instinct  of 
the  masses,  revolt  is  the  result  of  their 
thought. 

The  people  are  capable  of  good  judgment 
when  they  do  not  listen  to  demagogues. 
Ranters  never  help  matters  any,  and  always 
make  them  worse. 

In  revolutions  there  are  only  two  sorts  of 
men,  those  who  cause  them  and  those  who 
profit  by  them. 

Thrones  are  never  repaired. 

A  revolution  is  an  opinion  which  utilizes 
bayonets. 

Some  revolutions  are  inevitable.  There 
are  moral  eruptions,  just  as  the  outbreak  of 
volcanoes  are  physical  eruptions.  When  the 
chemical  combinations  which  produce  them 

[50] 


Things  Political 


are  complete,  the  volcanic  eruptions  burst 
forth,  just  as  revolutions  do  when  the  moral 
factors  are  in  the  right  state.  In  order  to 
foresee  them  the  trend  of  ideas  must  be 
understandingly  observed. 

A  revolution  is  a  vicious  circle  —  it  is 
caused  by  excesses  and  it  brings  them. 

Young  men  accomplish  revolutions  which 
older  men  have  prepared. 

Once  committed  to  a  course,  a  people  is 
riot  to  be  stopped. 

There  is  room  for  neither  passion  nor 
prejudice  in  public  affairs;  the  only  permis- 
sible passion  is  that  for  the  public  welfare. 

Charles  the  First  perished  because  he 
resisted,  Louis  xvi  because  he  did  not. 
Neither  comprehended  the  strength  of  inertia 
which  is  the  secret  of  great  reigns. 

In  statesmanship  there  are  predicaments 
from  which  it  is  impossible  to  escape  with- 
out some  wrongdoing. 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

One  can  lead  a  nation  only  by  helping  it 
see  a  bright  outlook.  A  leader  is  a  dealer 
in  hope. 

It  is  rare  that  a  legislature  reasons.  It 
is  too  quickly  impassioned. 

Large  legislative  bodies  resolve  them- 
selves into  coteries,  and  coteries  into  jeal- 
ousies. 

Nations  must  be  saved  in  spite  of  them- 
selves. 

Parties  weaken  themselves  by  their  fear 
of  capable  men. 

A  political  faction  never  tolerates  a 
permanent  leader.  It  needs  one  for  each 
passion. 

During  the  Revolution  the  French  were 
never  without  a  king. 

The  hereditary  character  of  orders  of 
nobility  deprives  both  noble  and  commoner 
of  the  spirit  of  emulation. 

[52] 


Things  Political 


Necessity  can  be  overcome  only  by  abso- 
lute power. 

A  revolution  is  effected  when  it  is  only 
necessary  to  get  rid  of  one  man. 

Absolute  power  represses  ambitions  and 
makes  selection ;  democracy  unchains  all 
without  examination. 

A  usurper  has  had  too  many  masters  not 
to  begin  by  being  arbitrary. 

Nothing  should  resemble  a  man  less  than 
a  king. 

(/I  will  be  the  Brutus  of  kings  and  the 
Caesar  of  the  republic. 

Discipline  is  permanent  only  as  it  is  ap- 
propriate to  the  character  of  the  nation. 

Never  have  national  assemblies  combined 
prudence  and  energy,  wisdom  and  vigor. 

Under  a  system  of  absolute  government, 
only  one  will  is  necessary  to  destroy  an 

[53] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

abuse;  under  a  representative  system,  five 
hundred  are  necessary. 

The  people  never  choose  real  legislators. 

In  spite  of  all  their  horrors,  revolutions 
are  nevertheless  the  true  cause  of  regener- 
ation in  public  customs. 

Democracy  may  become  frenzied,  but  it 
has  feelings  and  can  be  moved.  As  for  aris- 
tocracy, it  is  always  cold  and  never  forgives. 

I  have  a  very  poor  opinion  of  a  govern- 
ment which  lacks  the  power  to  interdict  the 
things  that  are  capable  of  causing  friction 
with  foreign  governments. 

I  espouse  no  party  but  the  masses.  My 
policy  is  to  complete  the  fusion  of  the  whole 
people. 

The  institution  of  a  national  nobility  is 
not  contrary  to  equality.  It  is  necessary  to 
maintain  the  social  order.  No  social  order 
has  ever  been  established  on  agrarian  laws. 
The  principle  of  private  property  and  of 

[54] 


Things  Political 


transmission  by  contract  of  sale,  by  gift 
during  life,  or  by  will,  is  a  fundamental 
principle  which  does  not  detract  from  equal- 
ity. From  this  principle  is  derived  the  cus- 
tom of  transmitting  from  father  to  son  the 
remembrance  of  services  rendered  to  the 
state.  Fortunes  are  sometimes  acquired  by 
means  shameful  or  criminal.  Titles  acquired 
by  services  to  the  state  rise  from  a  pure  and 
honorable  source.  Their  transmission  to 
posterity  is  only  simple  justice  (See  Note 
3). 

I  must  govern  all  without  regard  to  what 
each  has  done.  They  have  rallied  to  me  to 
enjoy  security.  They  would  abandon  me 
tomorrow  if  matters  became  problematical. 

The  laws  of  most  countries  are  made  to 
oppress  the  unfortunate  and  to  protect  the 
powerful. 

We  frustrate  many  designs  against  us  by 
pretending  not  to  see  them. 

Those  who  avenge  on  principle  are  fero- 
cious and  implacable, 

[55] 


Napoleon  in  His  O<wn   Words 

The  name  and  the  power  of  government 
signify  nothing,  provided  citizens  are  equal 
in  their  rights,  and  that  justice  is  well  ad- 
ministered. 

There  are  only  two  classes  in  Europe, 
those  who  want  privileges,  and  those  who 
spurn  them. 

The  man  the  least  free  is  the  man  bound 
to  party. 

Nothing  goes  well  in  a  political  system 
where  words  play  with  things. 

Social  law  is  able  to  give  all  men  the  same 
rights,  though  nature  will  never  give  them 
equal  abilities. 

Prosperity  is  the  best  tie  between  prince 
and  people. 

Government  ought  to  be  a  continuous 
demonstration. 

The  susceptibility  of  a  government  is  its 
own  accusation  of  weakness. 

[56] 


Things  Political 


All  governments  ought  to  see  men  only 
in  mass. 

It  is  the  unity  of  interests  which  makes 
the  strength  of  governments. 

Absolute  power  must  be  essentially  pater- 
nal ;  otherwise  it  will  be  overthrown. 

Every  man  who  is  worth  thirty  millions 
and  is  not  wedded  to  them,  is  dangerous  to 
the  government. 

In  the  last  analysis  there  must  be  a  mili- 
tary quality  in  government.     One  governs 
a  horse  only  with  boots  and  spurs. 

The  foundation  of  all  authority  is  in  the 
advantage  of  those  who  obey. 

The  wars  of  the  Revolution  have  en- 
nobled the  entire  French  nation. 

Appealing  to  foreigners  is  a  criminal  act. 

A  party  which  sustains  itself  only  by 
foreign  bayonets  is  vanquished. 

[57] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

The  old  nobility  would  have  continued  to 
exist  if  it  had  not  been  more  concerned  with 
branches  than  with  roots. 

Out  of  a  hundred  favorites  of  kings, 
ninety-five  have  been  hanged. 

The  court,  taken  collectively,  exercises  no 
direct  influence  on  the  tone  and  the  man- 
ners of  a  nation.  It  affects  these  only 
because  its  elements,  those  who  compose  it, 
spread,  each  in  his  own  sphere  of  activity, 
that  which  they  have  drawn  from  the 
common  source.  The  tone  of  the  court, 
therefore,  affects  the  whole  nation  only  by 
spreading  through  the  various  ranks  of  so- 
ciety. 

It  is  a  great  mistake  of  the  court  not  to 
give  itself  leadership. 

The  old  nobility  would  have  survived  if 
it  had  known  enough  to  become  master  of 
writing  materials. 

A  prince  who  is  afraid  is  liable  to  be 
overthrown  at  any  moment. 
[58] 


Things  Political 


To  listen  to  the  interests  of  all,  marks  an 
ordinary  government;  to  foresee  them, 
marks  a  great  government. 

A  sovereign  ought  to  occupy  himself  with 
seeking  the  good  that  is  in  the  bad,  and 
conversely. 

A  government  can  live  only  in  accordance 
with  its  own  principles. 

The  wisdom  of  the  chief  of  the  state  is 
to  foresee  events.  At  the  very  moment 
when  he  is  the  most  beneficent  he  is  accused 
of  tyranny. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  the  chief  of  the 
^fate  should  be  the  chief  of  a  party. 

The  eminence  of  sovereigns  depends  on 
that  of  their  peoples. 

A  great  monarch  is  the  one  who  foresees 
results  at  all  times. 

Palace  troops  are  dangerous  in  proportion 
as  the  sovereign  is  absolute. 

[59] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

It  is  good  policy  to  make  a  people  believe 
they  are  free.  It  is  good  government  to 
make  them  as  happy  as  they  wish  to  be. 

The  chief  of  state  ought  no  more  to 
abandon  the  government  of  ideas  than  the 
government  of  men. 

The  expression  "  political  virtue/'  is  non- 
sense. 

Peace  is  the  first  of  needs,  as  it  is  the 
first  of  glories. 

Peace  ought  to  be  the  result  of  a  system 
well  considered,  founded  on  the  true  inter- 
ests of  the  different  countries,  honorable  to 
each,  and  ought  not  to  be  either  a  capitula- 
tion or  the  result  of  a  threat. 

A  sovereign  who  attaches  himself  to  a 
faction  unsteadies  his  bark  and  hastens 
shipwreck. 

The  chief  of  state  must  cooperate  even 
with  the  bad  for  the  triumph  of  public  af- 
fairs. 

[60] 


Things  Political 


A  sovereign  ought  not  to  rely  either  on 
word  or  look. 

The  conspirators  who  unite  to  shake  off 
a  tyranny,  commence  by  submitting  to  that 
of  a  chief. 

Imagination  has  done  more  harm  than 
facts.  It  is  the  capital  enemy  of  monarchs. 

Honors  are,  for  a  sovereign,  a  moral 
treasury. 

It  is  by  wounding  the  self-love  of  princes 
that  we  influence  their  deliberations. 

A  material  conspiracy  is  ended  the  mo- 
ment we  seize  the  hand  which  holds  the 
dagger;  a  moral  conspiracy  never  ends. 

A  state  is  better  off  with  ministers  of 
moderate  ability  who  continue  in  office,  than 
with  able  ones  when  changes  are  frequent. 

Indecision  in  fundamental  things  is  to 
government  what  paralysis  is  to  the  move- 
ments of  the  limbs. 

[61] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Etiquette  is  the  prison  of  kings. 

Public  opinion  is  a  mysterious,  invisible 
power,  which  nothing  can  resist.  Nothing 
is  more  changeable,  more  intangible,  or 
stronger.  And  yet,  capricious  as  it  is,  it  is, 
nevertheless,  right,  reasonable,  and  just, 
much  oftener  than  we  are  disposed  to  think 
it  is. 

It  is  seldom  that  men  of  moderate  ability, 
when  in  authority,  have  honest  purposes; 
they  always  make  a  mess  of  things. 

Emergency  legislation  is  itself  an  indict- 
ment of  the  power  that  enacts  it. 

One  can  escape  the  arbitrariness  of  judges 
only  by  placing  one's  self  under  the  despot- 
ism of  law. 

The  most  deceptive  policy  is  playing  one 
faction  against  another,  and  flattering  your- 
self that  you  dominate  both. 

In  my  present  situation  (1814),  I  find 
nobility  only  in  the  rabble  which  I  have 

[62] 


Things  Political 


neglected,  and  rabble  only  in  the  nobility  I 
have  created. 

L    Compromises  weaken  power. 

In  all  public  acts  there  should  be  strength, 
^perseverance,  and  singleness. 

When,  among  a  people,  all  want  place, 
one  finds  himself  sold  out  in  advance. 

The  advent  of  cannon  killed  the  feudal 
system;  ink  will  kill  the  modern  social  or- 
ganization. 

I  will  respect  the  conclusions  of  public 
opinion  when  they  are  legitimate ;  but  public 
opinion  has  caprices  one  must  scorn. 

In  a  government,  it  is  not  the  inconse- 
quential who  need  watching,  it  is  the  strong. 
It  is  to  the  latter  that  it  is  necessary  to 
direct  constant  attention.  Loosen  the  rein 
on  the  great  and  at  once  they  encroach  on 
the  sovereign.  Why  occupy  one's  self  so 
mu£h  with  the  rich?  The  rich  have  all  the 
advantages  that  organized  society  gives. 

[63] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

Their  very  wealth  protects  them  far  too 
well.  The  strength,  the  future  of  a  gov- 
ernment, the  power  of  a  throne,  are  in  the 
common  people,  and  the  dangers  which 
menace  it  are  in  the  strong.  Sovereigns, 
protect  the  common  people  if  you  wish  that 
in  their  turn  they  should  protect  you. 

Absolute  power  has  no  need  to  lie;  it 
acts,  and  says  nothing.  A  responsible  gov- 
ernment is,  always  obliged  to  speak,  and  is 
led  into  ignoble  lies.  In  a  short  time  it 
becomes  discredited  and  falls,  scorned. 
Absolute  power  at  least  falls  hated. 

Political  laws  compared  with  those  of 
humanity  have  brief  duration.  They  grow 
out  of  conditions  and  manners,  and  as  con- 
ditions and  manners  change,  they  change 
with  them. 

I  have  sown  liberty  with  a  bountiful 
hand  wherever  I  have  established  my  Civil 
Code  (See  Note  4). 

In  all  civilized  countries,  mere  strength 
yields  to  civil  requirements.  Bayonets  bow 


Things  Political 


down  before  the  priest  who  speaks  in  the 
name  of  heaven,  and  before  the  man  who 
inspires  respect  by  his  knowledge. 

There  are  more  chances  of  securing  a 
good  sovereign  by  heredity  than  by  election. 

Such  is  the  inevitable  trend  of  these  nu- 
merous bodies  (the  Chambers)  ;  they  perish 
for  lack  of  harmony.  Leaders  are  as  neces- 
sary to  them  as  to  armies.  In  the  latter 
they  are  appointed.  But  men  of  great  talent, 
the  superior  geniuses,  make  themselves 
masters  of  assemblies  and  of  governments. 

The  Revolution  ought  to  teach  that  noth- 
ing is  foreseen. 

The  great  powers  suffer  from  indigestion. 

A  king  must  not  allow  himself  to  be 
crushed  by  misfortune. 


V 

CONCERNING  THE  FINE  ARTS 

I   LOOK  on  scholars  and  wits  as  I  do  on 
coquettes.    It  is  all  right  to  call  on  either, 
to  chat  with  them,  but  not  to  take  a  coquette 
for  a  wife,  or  the  others  for  ministers. 

Great  writers  are  but  esteemed  drivelers. 

A  stupid  is  only  a  bore;  a  pedant  is  un- 
bearable. 

If  the  French  language  has  become  a 
universal  language,  it  is  to  the  genius  of 
men  of  letters  that  we  owe  it. 

The  French  language  is  the  most  culti- 
vated modern  language,  and  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  go  to  any  other  for  inscriptions  for 
monuments. 

The   French  language   is   not  a  perfect 
language.     It  lacks  many  words.     It  im- 
[66] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

perfectly  expresses  a  crowd  of  things  —  a 
sound  impression,  a  great  thought.  It  is 
rather  the  language  of  wit  than  of  genius. 

The  classics  are  written  by  rhetoricians, 
while  they  ought  to  be  written  only  by 
statesmen,  or  men  of  the  world. 

A  book  in  which  there  were  no  lies  would 
be  a  curiosity. 

Books  are  too  argumentative  not  to  cor- 
rupt a  nation  by  dishabituating  it  from  fact. 

The  only  encouragement  for  poets  are 
the  places  in  the  Institute,  because  these 
give  to  them  a  standing  in  the  nation. 

The  art  of  the  sovereign,  like  that  of  the 
minister,  is  to  give  refulgence  to  good 
works. 

There  ought  to  be  power  to  give  pensions 
to  men  of  letters.  To  those  who  are  in  need, 
the  Minister  of  Interior  gives  200,000  francs 
per  annum,  by  way  of  relief.  It  is  a  dis- 
agreeable form  of  disbursing  it,  and  has 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

nothing  in  keeping  with  the  national  source 
from  which  it  comes.     It  is  charity. 

All  men  of  genius,  and  all  those  who 
have  gained  rank  in  the  republic  of  letters, 
are  brothers,  whatever  may  be  the  land  of 
their  nativity. 

Newspapers  are  not  history,  any  more 
than  bulletins  are. 

Historians  too  often  make  history  un- 
intelligible by  their  ignorance,  or  by  their 
laziness.  When  they  do  not  understand,  or 
do  not  know,  they  draw  on  their  imagina- 
tion, instead  of  making  researches  which 
would  lead  them  to  the  truth. 

History,  as  I  take  it,  ought  to  present 
individuals  or  peoples  just  as  they  have 
shown  themselves  to  be  at  the  height  of 
their  accomplishment.  Account  must  be 
taken  of  the  external  circumstances,  which 
must  necessarily  exert  a  great  influence  on 
their  actions ;  and  a  clear  view  must  be  had 
of  the  limits  within  which  this  influence 
was  exercised.  The  Roman  Emperors 
[68] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

were  not  as  bad  as  Tacitus  painted  them. 
Moreover,  I  much  prefer  Montesquieu  to 
Tacitus.  He  is  juster,  and  his  criticism  is 
more  conformable  to  truth. 

It  must  be  recognized  that  the  real  truths 
of  history  are  hard  to  discover.  Happily, 
for  the  most  part,  they  are  rather  matters 
of  curiosity  than  of  real  importance.  There 
are  so  many  verities !  This  historical  verity 
so  much  appealed  to,  which  each  zealously 
invokes,  is  too  often  only  a  word.  Truth 
is  impossible  at  the  moment  of  events,  in 
the  heat  of  aroused  passions;  if,  later,  ac- 
cord is  restored,  only  those  interested  re- 
main; there  are  none  to  controvert.  But 
what  really  is  this  historical  verity  in  most 
cases?  a  lie  agreed  on,  as  some  one  has 
very  wittily  said.  In  every  matter  there 
are  two  very  distinct  elements  —  the  actual 
facts,  and  the  motives  behind  them.  The 
actual  facts,  it  would  seem,  ought  to  be 
incontrovertible;  and  yet,  there  are  some 
which  remain  eternally  in  dispute.  As  to 
motives,  what  are  the  means  of  discovering 
them,  even  assuming  the  good  faith  of  the 
narrators?  And  what  will  they  be  if  the 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

narrators  are  actuated  by  bad  faith,  by  in- 
terest and  passion  ?  I  have  given  an  order, 
but  who  is  able  to  read  my  innermost 
thought,  my  real  intention?  Yet,  neverthe- 
less, each  will  take  this  order,  measure  it 
with  his  own  yardstick,  adjust  it  to  his  own 
theories,  his  individual  beliefs.  And  each 
will  hold  firmly  to  what  he  relates.  And 
the  lesser  writers  who  take  it  from  these 
privileged  lips  will  be  as  sure  of  it  in  their 
turn !  And  then  the  memoirs  and  the  diaries 
and  the  drawing-room  anecdotes  and  witty 
speeches  which  follow  in  their  train!  That 
nevertheless  is  history. 

Little  love  scenes  in  tragedy  are  banal; 
our  age  is  advancing,  and  everything  must 
advance  with  it. 

History  proves  that  detraction  falls 
quickly  into  contempt.  If  detractors  could 
only  look  through  the  mass  of  rubbish 
there  is  in  the  National  Library  that 
has  been  written  against  Henry  iv  and 
Louis  xiv,  they  would  be  humiliated  by 
their  impotence;  they  have  not  left  an  im- 
pression. 

[70] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

Verse  is  only  the  embroidery  of  the 
dramatic  fabric. 

A  good  tragedy  always  grows  better  every- 
day. High  tragedy  is  the  school  of  great 
men.  It  is  the  duty  of  sovereigns  to  encour- 
age and  promote  it.  It  is  not  necessary  to  be 
a  poet  to  judge  it.  It  is  sufficient  to  know 
men  and  things,  to  have  elevation  of  mind, 
a  statesmanlike  outlook. 

France  owes  to  Corneille  some  of  her 
finest  achievements.  If  he  were  alive,  I 
would  make  him  a  prince. 

I  love  high  tragedy ;  the  sublime,  like  that 
of  Corneille.  In  tragedy  great  men  are 
more  truly  great  than  in  history.  We  see 
them  only  in  the  crises  which  unfold  them, 
in  the  moments  of  supreme  decision;  and 
we  are  not  burdened  with  all  the  preparatory 
details  and  conjectures,  often  false,  which 
the  historian  gives  us.  There  is  equal  gain 
for  glory,  for  there  is  enough  weakness,  un- 
certainty, and  doubt  in  men ;  but  there  ought 
to  be  none  in  heroes.  Tragedy  should  be 
an  heroic  statue  in  which  nothing  of  the 

[71] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

weakness  or  quivering  of  the  flesh  is  seen.  It 
should  be  the  "  Perseus "  of  Benvenuto 
Cellini,  that  group  sublime  and  true  which 
owes  its  very  existence  (though  its  appear- 
ance gives  no  hint  of  it)  to  the  pewter  plates 
and  dishes  which  the  artist  in  the  fury  of 
desperation  flung  into  his  seething  crucible 
to  give  his  bronze  the  fit  quality  for  his 
masterpiece. 

I  am  thankful  that  tragedy  has  thus  mag- 
nified some  men,  or  rather  has  given  them 
the  true  stature  of  superior  men  in  a  mortal 
body.  I  have  often  wished  that  our  poets 
had  been  able  to  do  that  for  our  modern 
heroes.  And  why  not?  Genius  has  not  grown 
less  since  the  time  of  Caesar.  But  our  poets 
have  known  nothing  of  modern  genius,  not 
more  of  Henry  iv  than  of  Philip  the  Fair 
(See  Note  5). 

Tragedy  should  be  the  school  of  kings 
and  of  nations.  It  forms  the  highest  pin- 
nacle to  which  poets  can  attain. 

Melodramas  are  the  tragedies  of  cham- 
bermaids. 

[72] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

In  the  Agamemnon  of  Aeschylus,  what  I 
admire  is  the  great  strength  joined  to  great 
simplicity  which  is  exhibited.  I  am  struck, 
more  than  by  anything  else,  by  the  grada- 
tions of  terror  which  characterize  the  pro- 
ductions of  this  father  of  tragedy.  And 
there  is  there,  moreover,  the  first  spark 
from  which  has  been  kindled  our  beautiful 
modern  flame. 

It  is  not  fair  to  paint  everything  black, 
as  Tacitus  does.  He  has  not  sufficiently 
sought  out  the  causes,  and  the  interior 
springs,  of  events;  he  has  not  sufficiently 
studied  the  mystery  of  facts  and  of  mo- 
tives. He  has  not  sufficiently  sought  for 
and  scrutinized  their  interplay,  to  transmit 
a  just  and  impartial  judgment  to  posterity. 

Dante  is  to  me  the  greatest  genius  of 
modern  times.  Dante  is  a  sun  who  shines 
in  all  his  brilliancy  in  the  midst  of  profound 
night.  Everything  in  him  is  extraordinary. 
His  originality,  especially,  assigns  to  him  a 
rank  apart.  Ariosto  has  imitated  the  ro- 
mance of  chivalry,  and  the  poems  of  the 
ancients.  Tasso  has  done  the  same  thing. 

[73] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Dante  has  not  deigned  to  take  his  inspira- 
tion from  any  other.  He  has  wished  to  be 
himself,  himself  alone;  in  a  word,  to  create. 
He  has  occupied  a  vast  space,  and  has  filled 
it  with  the  superiority  of  a  sublime  mind. 
He  is  diverse,  strong,  and  gracious.  He 
has  imagination,  warmth,  and  enthusiasm. 
He  makes  his  reader  tremble,  shed  tears, 
feel  the  thrill  of  honor  in  a  way  that  is  the 
height  of  art.  Severe  and  menacing,  he  has 
terrible  imprecations  for  crime,  scourgings 
for  vice,  sorrow  for  misfortune.  As  a  citi- 
zen, affected  by  the  laws  of  the  republic,  he 
thunders  against  its  oppressors,  but  he  is 
always  ready  to  excuse  his  native  city, 
Florence  is  ever  to  him  his  sweet,  beloved 
country,  dear  to  his  heart.  I  am  envious 
for  my  dear  France,  that  she  has  never  pro- 
duced a  rival  to  Dante;  that  this  Colossus 
has  not  had  his  equal  among  us.  No,  there 
is  no  reputation  which  can  be  compared 
to  his. 

It  is  astonishing  how  poorly  Voltaire 
bears  reading  (See  Note  6).  When  the 
pomp  and  diction,  the  influence  of  the  situa- 
tion, no  longer  mislead  analysis  or  good 

[74] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

taste,  then  he  loses  a  thousand  per  cent  at 
once. 

Homer  was  the  encyclopedist  of  his  epoch 
(See  Note  7). 

A  prelate  like  Fenelon  (See  Note  8),  is 
the  finest  gift  heaven  can  bestow  on  a  great 
city,  and  a  government. 

I  disapprove  of  giving  La  Fontaine  to 
children  not  old  enough  to  understand  him 
(See  Note  9).  There  is  too  much  irony  in 
the  fable  of  the  wolf  and  the  lamb  to  bring 
it  within  the  reach  of  children.  It  errs, 
moreover,  to  my  mind  in  its  purpose  and 
its  trend.  It  is  not  true  that  the  right  of 
the  stronger  is  the  better.  And  if  it  seems 
to  be,  that  is  the  wrong,  the  abuse,  that 
ought  to  be  condemned.  The  wolf,  there- 
fore, ought  to  have  choked  himself  in  eating 
the  lamb. 

Well  done  as  Racine's  (See  Note  10) 
masterpieces  are  in  themselves,  he  has,  nev- 
ertheless, flavored  them  with  a  perpetual 
gallantry,  an  eternal  love,  with  his  tone  of 

[75] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

insipid  sweetness,  his  tiresome  surround- 
ings. But  still  it  is  not  wholly  his  fault; 
it  was  the  vice  and  the  manners  of  his  time. 
Love  then,  and  later  still,  was  the  principal 
affair  of  life  with  everyone.  It  always  is 
in  the  idle  strata  of  society.  As  for  us,  we 
in  our  generation  have  been  rudely  dis- 
tracted from  it  by  the  Revolution  and  its 
stirring  effects. 

Without  question,  Tar  tuff  e  (See  Note  n) 
in  its  entirety,  is  from  a  master  hand.  It  is 
the  masterpiece  of  an  inimitable  man.  Nev- 
ertheless, this  play  is  of  such  a  character 
that  for  my  part  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  if  it  had  been  written  in  my  time  I 
would  not  have  permitted  it  to  be  presented. 

Gil  Bias  is  witty  (See  Note  12),  but  he 
deserved  the  galleys,  he  and  all  of  his. 

The  Genius  of  Christianity,  by  De  Cha- 
teaubriand (See  Note  13),  is  a  work  of  lead 
and  gold,  but  the  gold  predominates. 

La  Harpe  (See  Note  14)  was  a  man 
without  genius,  without  imagination,  freez- 

[76] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

ingly  cold  to  his  neighbors.  He  was  later  a 
rabid  devotee  without  being  more  sincere. 
He  conspired  against  the  state  through 
pride. 

Everything  that  is  great  and  national  in 
character  ought  to  acknowledge  the  genius 
of  De  Chateaubriand. 

I  read  a  few  chapters  of  Madame  de 
Stael's  (See  Note  15)  Corinne,  but  I 
couldn't  finish  it.  Madame  de  Stael  has 
drawn  herself  so  well  in  her  heroine,  that 
she  has  succeeded  in  making  me  cordially 
hate  her.  I  see  her,  I  hear  her,  I  feel  her, 
I  want  to  get  away  from  her,  and  I  throw 
down  the  book. 

The  home  of  Madame  de  Stael  at  Coppet 
became  a  veritable  arsenal  against  me. 
Thither  came  many  to  be  armed  as  knights 
against  me.  She  occupied  herself  in  stir- 
ring up  enemies  against  me,  and  fought  me 
herself.  She  was  at  the  same  time  Armide 
and  Clorinde  (See  Note  16).  And  yet, 
after  all,  it  is  only  true  to  say  that  no  one 
can  deny  that  Madame  de  Stael  is  a  woman 

[773 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

of  very  great  talent,  greatly  distinguished, 
and  of  much  strength  of  character.  She 
will  endure. 

Beaumarchais  (See  Note  17)  was  a  man 
without  morals,  without  principle,  a  dealer 
in  literature,  rather  than  a  man  of  letters; 
aspiring  to  fortune  and  finding  every  means 
good  by  which  he  could  reach  it;  endowed 
with  a  keen  mind,  observant,  mocking,  and 
satirical;  carrying  audacity  to  effrontery; 
insolent  with  the  great,  eating  from  their 
hand;  armored  against  all  infamies,  and 
sacrificing  everything  to  his  insatiable  de- 
sire to  be  the  most  talked  of  man  in  Paris. 
Under  my  reign  such  a  man  would  have 
been  locked  up  as  a  madman.  It  would 
have  been  called  arbitrary,  but  what  a  serv- 
ice it  would  have  been  to  society. 

The  Theatre  Frangaise  (See  Note  18) 
ought  to  be  supported  because  it  is  a  part 
of  the  national  glory.  But  it  ought  to  re- 
duce the  price  of  seats  in  the  parquette,  to 
twenty  sous  on  Sunday,  in  order  that  the 
people  may  be  able  to  enjoy  it.  We  do  not 
have  to  do  things  always  just  as  they  have 

[78] 


Concerning  the  Fine  Arts 

been  done  in  the  past,  as  if  it  were  impos- 
sible to  do  better. 

The  division  of  labor,  which  has  brought 
such  perfection  in  mechanical  industries,  is 
altogether  fatal  when  applied  to  productions 
of  the  mind.  All  work  of  the  mind  is 
superior  in  proportion  as  the  mind  that 
produces  it  is  universal. 

It  is  scarcely  to  be  believed,  yet  at  the 
time  of  the  Revolution  Voltaire  had  de- 
throned Corneille  and  Racine.  We  were 
asleep  to  the  beauties  of  these;  it  was  the 
First  Consul  who  brought  about  the  awak- 
ening. 

You  can't  do  anything  with  a  philosopher. 

It  has  been  the  desire  of  my  heart  to 
see  the  artists  of  France  surpass  the  glory 
of  Athens  and  of  Italy. 

The  Arcs  de  Triomphe  would  be  futile 
work,  serving  no  purpose,  and  I  would  not 
have  built  them  if  I  had  not  thought  them 
a  means  of  encouraging  architecture.  I 

[79] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

hoped  with  the  Arcs  de  Triomphe  to  nourish 
the  architecture  of  France  for  twenty  years. 

In  science  the  world  of  details  is  yet  to 
be  discovered. 

Opera  costs  the  government  eight  hun- 
dred thousand  francs  a  year;  it  is  necessary 
to  sustain  an  establishment  which  flatters 
the  national  vanity.  Grand  Opera  alone 
should  be  permitted  to  produce  ballets. 

Why  did  not  the  Revolution,  wrhich  de- 
stroyed so  much,  demolish  the  Chateau 
of  Versailles?  I  would  not  have  a  fort  of 
Louis  xiv  on  my  hands,  and  to  tolerate  an 
old,  badly  built  chateau,  is  to  make  of  it, 
as  one  has  said,  "  a  favorite  without  merit  " 
(See  Note  19). 


VI 

ADMINISTRATION 

THERE  ought  to  be  authority  to  give 
pensions  to  men  who  have  rendered 
service  as  civil  functionaries,  such  as  pre- 
fects, superior  judges,  counsellors  of  state, 
and  to  their  widows.  When  there  is  no 
future  for  public  functionaries,  they  abuse 
their  places.  The  Directory,  unable  to  give 
pensions,  gave  a  pecuniary  interest  in  official 
business,  something  very  reprehensible. 

A   French    functionary   ought   to   excite 
envy  always,  never  pity. 

More  character  is  required  in  adminis- 
tration than  in  war. 

The  thing  is,  not  to  select  the  man  whom 
the  place  fits,  but  the  man  who  fits  the  place. 

Great  functionaries,  however  economical 
and  even  parsimonious  they  may  be  in  their 
[81] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

private  life,  should  be  generous  and  free- 
handed in  their  public  life. 

The  emoluments  of  public  employes  ought 
to  be  such  as  to  permit  a  style  of  living  cor- 
responding to  the  importance  of  their  func- 
tions. The  French  ought  to  maintain  in 
everything  an  attitude  befitting  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  greatest  nation  in  the 
world. 

Laws  which  are  consistent  in  theory  often 
prove  chaotic  in  practice. 

In  practical  administration,  experience  is 
everything. 

The  prefects  (See  Note  20),  with  all  the 
authority  and  the  local  resources  with  which 
they  found  themselves  invested,  were  em- 
perors on  a  small  scale.  And  as  their  whole 
power  came  from  the  appointing  power,  of 
which  they  were  but  the  instruments,  as  all 
the  influence  they  had  arose  from  their  im- 
mediate employment,  and  none  of  it  from 
their  own  individuality,  and  as  they  owned 
none  of  the  soil  they  ruled,  they  had  all  the 


Administration 


advantages  of  the  old  despotic  functionaries, 
without  any  of  their  disadvantages.  It  had 
been  absolutely  necessary  to  give  this  ex- 
tensive power.  I  found  myself  dictator; 
circumstances  had  willed  it  thus.  It  was 
therefore  necessary  that  the  system  center- 
ing in  me,  should  be  in  perfect  harmony 
with  my  will;  otherwise  there  was  danger 
of  it  breaking  down.  The  governmental 
network  with  which  I  covered  the  country, 
necessitated  keen  tension,  and  perfect  elas- 
ticity, if  we  were  to  repel  promptly  and 
effectively  the  terrific  blows  constantly  aimed 
at  us. 

There  must  of  necessity  be  some  inter- 
mediary means  between  the  people  and  the 
executive  power,  otherwise  nothing  will  be 
accomplished. 

There  is  too  much  centralization  of 
power  in  France.  I  wish  there  were  less 
authority  in  Paris,  and  more  in  each  local- 
ity. 

Without  system  and  method,  administra- 
tion becomes  chaos,  and  there  is  neither 

[83] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

public  finances  nor  public  credit ;  and  private 
fortunes  collapse  with  the  collapse  of  the 
state. 

France  abounds  in  practical,  capable  men ; 
the  thing  is  to  find  them,  and  to  give 
them  the  means  of  proving  themselves. 
There  are  men  at  the  plow  who  ought  to  be 
in  the  Council  of  State;  and  ministers  of 
state  who  ought  to  be  at  the  plow. 

I  wish  there  were  a  teaching  body  which 
should  be  a  nursery  of  teachers,  school  prin- 
cipals, and  schoolmasters,  and  would  arouse 
in  them  a  splendid  spirit  of  emulation. 
Young  men  who  devote  themselves  to  teach- 
ing ought  to  have  the  prospect  of  rising 
from  one  grade  to  another  to  the  highest 
places  in  the  state.  The  feet  of  this  great 
teaching  body  should  be  in  the  schools,  and 
its  head  in  the  Senate.  But  the  principle 
of  celibacy  is  necessary,  to  this  extent,  that 
schoolmasters  ought  not  to  be  allowed  to 
marry  until  they  are  twenty-five  or  thirty 
years  of  age,  and  have  reached  a  salary  of 
three  or  four  thousand  francs  a  year,  and 
have  made  sufficient  economies.  This  is, 


Administration 


after  all,  only  the  application  of  the  cus- 
tomary foresight  as  to  marriage  in  all  ranks 
of  society. 

I  am  conscious  that  in  the  matter  of  the 
instruction  of  youth,  the  Jesuits  have  left 
a  very  great  void.  I  have  no  wish  to  re- 
establish them,  or  any  other  body  subject 
to  alien  control.  But  I  do  believe  myself 
under  obligations  to  organize  a  system  of 
education  for  the  rising  generation  in  such 
a  way  that  oversight  of  its  political  and 
moral  opinions  may  be  secured. 

I  believe  also  that  it  is  wise  in  this  organ- 
ization to  require  celibacy  up  to  a  certain 
age;  not  absolute  celibacy,  for,  without  con- 
tradiction, marriage  is  the  perfect  social 
state. 

This  teaching  body  should  be  so  consti- 
tuted that  records  will  be  kept  of  each  child 
above  nine  years  of  age. 

The  Frenchman  is  so  inclined  to  be  in- 
fatuated with  the  foreigner  that  it  is,  per- 
haps, not  necessary  to  teach  pupils  foreign 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

languages.  One  of  the  obstacles  to  the  re- 
establishment  of  our  marine  is  the  high 
opinion  that  our  sailors  have  of  the  supe- 
,  riority  of  the  English.  It  was  Prusso-mania 
which  lost  the  battle  of  Rossbach  (See  Note 

21). 

There  will  never  be  a  fixed  policy  of  state 
until  there  is  a  teaching  body  with  fixed 
principles.  As  long  as  no  one  is  taught  from 
childhood  that  it  is  necessary  to  be  a  re- 
publican or  a  monarchist,  Catholic  or  with- 
out religion,  the  state  will  never  form  a 
nation.  It  will  rest  on  uncertain  and  un- 
stable foundations.  It  will  be  constantly 
subject  to  disorders  and  changes. 

It  is  affirmed  that  the  schools  maintained 
by  the  lay  Brothers  are  likely  to  introduce 
in  the  University  a  dangerous  element,  and 
it  is  proposed  to  exclude  them  from  its  jur- 
isdiction. I  cannot  understand  the  species 
of  fanaticism  writh  which  some  persons  are 
animated  against  the  lay  Brothers.  It  is 
purely  a  prejudice.  Moreover,  those  who 
propose  to  leave  the  Brothers  outside  the 
University  do  not  realize  that  they  are  going 
[86] 


Administration 


counter  to  their  own  purposes.  It  is  by 
including  them  in  the  University  that  they 
will  become  a  part  of  the  civil  order,  and 
the  danger  of  their  independence  will  be 
forestalled.  They  will  not  be  dangerous 
when  they  no  longer  have  a  foreign  or  an 
unknown  head  (See  Note  22). 

There  is  no  necessity  for  granting  too 
easily  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  the  Univer- 
sity. The  postulant  ought  to  be  examined 
on  matters  more  difficult;  for  example,  on 
the  comparison  of  languages.  There  would 
be  nothing  out  of  the  way  in  requiring  a 
candidate  to  speak  in  Latin  for  an  hour  and 
a  half.  It  is  not  necessary  that  everybody 
should  become  a  doctor. 

I  have  never  intended  that  professors 
should  undertake  the  establishment  of  col- 
leges on  their  own  account.  That  would  be 
ridiculous.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have  never 
wanted  their  stipends  to  be  fixed  indepen- 
dently of  the  number  of  students.  I  have 
believed  their  stipends  should  be  in  propor- 
tion to  the  increase  in  the  number  of  stu- 
dents, so  that  they  would  have  an  interest 

[87] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

in  the  success  of  these  establishments. 
Moreover,  it  is  not  possible  to  have  a  uni- 
form scale  of  stipends.  They  must  be 
graded  according  to  locality  and  merit. 

There  are  some  changes  to  be  made  in 
the  authority  regarding  publications  which 
it  is  proposed  to  give  the  University.  It  is 
not  necessary  that  it  should  arrogate  any 
power  to  itself  to  repress  works  which  are 
published  by  others.  Its  rights  should  be 
limited  to  replying  to  them,  to  putting  them 
on  the  expurgatory  index  of  the  University, 
and  to  punishing  professors  who  avail 
themselves  of  such  works  in  their  teaching. 
These  means  will  be  sufficient  to  prevent 
youth  from  being  carried  away  by  the  thou- 
sand jarring  errors  that  assail  them,  or 
being  drawn  into  scientific  or  literary  her- 
esies. 

The  religious  orders  would  be  the  best 
teaching  bodies  if  they  could  renounce  their 
allegiance  to  a  foreign  head. 

The  project  of  a  school  of  arts  and  crafts 
for  the  children  of  soldiers  and  sailors,  has 
[88] 


Administration 


been  considered  for  the  purpose  of  giving 
them  an  education  suitable  to  their  station. 
It  may  be  said  that  it  would  be  better  to 
apprentice  them  to  masters.  But  that  would 
answer  only  for  a  year  or  two,  and  would 
fail  very  soon.  There  is,  moreover,  a  po- 
litical purpose.  It  is  important.  There 
should  be  a  bringing  together  of  all  classes, 
and  in  a  national  spirit.  We  have  already 
followed  this  system  for  the  middle  classes. 
The  Lycees  (See  Note  23)  should  supply 
lawyers,  doctors,  and  educated  soldiers.  In 
order  to  extend  this  to  the  lower  classes 
two  other  schools  should  be  established,  and 
in  them  should  be  placed  the  children  of 
the  newly  annexed  departments  in  order 
that  they  may  be  taught  French.  It  is  from 
among  these  that  we  will  one  day  take  the 
workmen  for  our  ports  for  our  military 
workshops  and  for  our  colonies. 

The  law  looks  on  the  Commissioners  of 
War  as  civil  agents  only,  while  more  cour- 
age and  military  skill  are  required  of  them 
than  even  of  military  officers.  The  courage 
required  is  essentially  moral.  It  is  never 
the  result  of  anything  but  association  with 

[89] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

danger.  .  .  .  One  is  revolted  in  hearing 
daily  individuals  of  different  bureaus  ad- 
mit, and  even  almost  glory  in,  having  had 
fear. 

Our  system  of  finance  should  consist  in 
the  creation  of  a  great  number  of  indirect 
contributions,  of  which  the  very  moderate 
rate  would  be  capable  of  being  increased  to 
the  measure  of  need. 

It  seems  that  the  price  of  stocks,  in  Paris, 
is  everybody's  business  except  that  of  the 
real  owners.  The  so-called  buyers  and 
sellers  do  nothing,  in  fact,  but  make  bets 
with  one  another  that  such  will  be  at 
such  a  time  the  state  of  the  market.  Each 
of  them,  in  order  to  make  a  living,  tries  to 
direct  the  policies  of  the  whole  of  Europe 
toward  the  end  he  desires.  Each  invents, 
comments  on,  or  misrepresents  the  facts, 
penetrates  the  councils  and  the  cabinets  of 
ministers,  the  secrets  of  courts;  makes  am- 
bassadors speak;  decides  peace  and  war; 
stirs  up  and  misleads  opinion,  always  so  avid 
of  novelties  and  of  errors,  especially  in 
France,  that  the  more  one  misleads  it  the 

[90] 


Administration 


more  empire  he  has  over  it.  And  this  scan- 
dalous influence  is  not  alone  exercised  by 
that  crowd  of  adventurers  called  stock-job- 
bers. The  stock-brokers  themselves,  to 
whom  all  personal  speculation  is  interdicted 
by  the  nature  of  their  business,  take  advan- 
tage of  their  position  and  buy  and  sell  on 
their  own  account.  Often  they  become  op- 
posed in  interest  to  those,  even,  whom  they 
call  their  clients.  Public  morals  alone  would 
require  the  suppression  of  this  abuse,  and 
still  other  motives  join  with  this.  The 
rights  of  liberty  end  where  abuses  com- 
mence. 

I  do  not  want  to  have  the  appearance  of 
presenting  a  law  for  the  reestablishment  of 
the  salt  tax  (See  Note  24).  It  is  not  that 
I  would  fear  to  reestablish  it  if  I  thought  it 
useful  to  the  nation;  but  if  I  did,  I  would 
do  it  openly  and  above  board.  I  am  some- 
times a  fox,  but  I  know  how  to  be  a  lion. 

Commerce  is  only  possible  by  reason  of 
confidence.  There  can  be  no  confidence  un- 
der a  feeble  government.  There  is  no 
confidence  in  a  country  rent  by  factions. 

[91] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

Commerce  is  an  honorable  calling,  but  its 
essential  base  must  be  prudence  and  econ- 
omy. The  merchant  must  not  gain  his  for- 
tune as  one  gains  a  battle;  he  should  make 
little,  but  constantly. 

I  want  to  do  what  is  best  for  my  people, 
and  I  will  not  be  deterred  by  the  murmurs 
of  the  taxpayers.  France  needs  large  rev- 
enues. They  will  be  secured.  I  want  to 
establish  and  systematize  for  my  successors 
such  resources  as  will  supply  them  with  the 
extraordinary  means  which  I  have  been  able 
to  create. 

Why  is  there  no  public  spirit  in  France? 
It  is  because  the  land  owner  is  obliged  to 
make  his  court  to  the  administration.  If 
he  is  not  in  its  favor,  he  can  be  ruined. 
Decisions  in  land  title  cases  are  arbitrary. 
It  is  from  this  that  in  no  other  nation  is 
there  such  servile  attachment  to  the  govern- 
ment as  in  France,  because  only  there  is  title 
to  land  dependent  on  the  government. 
Nothing  has  ever  been  done  for  land  titles 
in  France.  Whoever  shall  frame  a  good 
registration  law  will  merit  a  statue. 
[92] 


Administration 


Finances  founded  on  good  agriculture 
will  never  be  ruined. 

I  would  find  it  very  useful  to  be  able  to 
refer  to  the  Council  of  State  the  abuses 
committed  by  the  prefects.  The  fear  of 
this  would  restrain  the  few  who  give  me 
cause  of  complaint. 

There  is  no  need  of  any  alliance  between 
the  Bank  and  the  Treasury.  Often  a  trifling 
transfer  of  funds  would  carry  with  it  secrets 
of  state. 

Courts  of  Special  Instance  (Special 
Courts)  cannot  be  dangerous  when  the 
Supreme  Court  passes  on  their  competency. 

It  is  easy  to  determine  with  precision 
misdemeanors  which  will  come  within  the 
jurisdiction  of  these  courts.  I  wish  they 
could  have  jurisdiction  in  cases  of  attempts 
against  the  police,  the  crimes  of  second  of- 
fenders, runaways  from  the  galleys,  and 
also  crimes  committed  by  malefactors  oper- 
ating together.  Simple  individuals,  like  ju- 
rors, are  intimidated  by  the  sight  of  a  band 

[93] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

of  culpables.  It  has  been  thought,  and 
rightly,  that  experienced  judges  would  not 
be  as  susceptible  to  these  impressions  of 
fear.  That  is  the  true  and  only  reason  for 
establishing  these  courts  of  Special  Instance. 

Care  must  be  taken  not  to  give  the  Court 
of  Appeals  such  powers  as  will,  insensibly, 
lead  it  to  go  into  questions  of  fact. 

Do  not  imagine  that  the  power  to  pardon 
can  be  exercised  with  impunity,  or  that  so- 
ciety will  applaud  every  use  of  it  by  the 
monarch.  Society  will  disapprove  when  it 
is  extended  to  felons,  to  murderers,  because 
then  it  becomes  dangerous  to  the  social 
order. 

It  is  in  sentences  for  violation  of  fiscal 
regulations,  and,  more  particularly  still,  in 
those  for  political  delinquencies,  that  clem- 
ency is  well  placed.  In  these  matters  the 
theory  is  that  it  is  the  sovereign  who  has 
been  attacked,  and  therefore  there  is  a  cer- 
tain nobility  in  pardon.  At  the  first  reports 
of  an  offense  of  this  kind,  the  interested 
public  ranges  itself  on  the  side  of  the  cul- 

[94] 


Administration 


prit,  and  not  on  that  of  the  punishing  power. 
If  the  prince  remits  the  punishment,  the 
people  think  of  him  as  superior  to  the 
offense,  and  opinion  is  turned  against  the 
offender.  If  the  prince  follows  the  opposite 
course,  he  gains  the  reputation  of  being 
hateful,  and  tyrannical.  If  he  extends  par- 
don in  the  case  of  odious  crimes,  he  gains 
the  reputation  of  being  weak  or  evilly  dis- 
posed. 

Borrowing  is  the  ruin  of  agricultural  na- 
tions and  the  life  of  manufacturing  ones. 

The  luxuries  of  the  rich  give  necessaries 
to  the  poor. 

In  the  application  of  laws  it  is  necessary 
to  take  into  consideration  the  non-producers. 

Our  system  of  jurisprudence  is  a  patch- 
work. It  is  not  based  on  comprehensive 
general  principles. 

It  is  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  the  jury 
system  is  strongly  intrenched  in  public 
opinion. 

[95] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

There  is  nothing  requiring  that  juries 
shall  be  selected  from  the  whole  body  of 
the  population.  Why  should  there  be  such 
a  hodge-podge,  associating  men  without  in- 
telligence with  men  of  education,  to  the  dis- 
gust of  the  latter? 

The  police  invent  more  than  they  find. 

Every  indulgence  to  culprits  suggests  com- 
plicity. 

Strong  reasons  have  been  urged  both  for 
and  against  the  jury  system.  But  there  is 
no  dissimulating  the  fact  that  a  tyrannical 
government  would  have  much  more  success 
with  juries  than  with  judges  who  are  less 
under  their  control,  and  who  always  would 
oppose  to  it  more  resistance;  moreover,  the 
bloodiest  tribunals  have  had  juries.  If  they 
had  been  composed  of  magistrates,  mere 
custom  and  formalities  would  have  been  a 
rampart  against  unjust  and  arbitrary  con- 
demnations. The  severity  which  the  con- 
tinual exercise  of  these  functions  so  fre- 
quently brings  is  not  greatly  to  be  feared 
when  the  procedure  is  public,  and  the  de- 

[96] 


Administration 


fendants  are  represented  by  counsel,  with 
the  right  of  argument  (See  Note  25). 

To  interpret  the  law  is  to  corrupt  it; 
lawyers  strangle  laws. 

A  magistrate  ought  to  have  courage  equal 
to  all  proofs,  and,  for  example,  like  Presi- 
dents Harley  and  Mole  (See  Note  26),  be 
ready  to  perish  in  defending  the  sovereign, 
the  throne,  and  the  laws.  The  most  glorious 
death  would  be  that  of  a  soldier  on  the  field 
of  honor,  if  the  death  of  a  magistrate  in 
defense  of  the  sovereign,  the  throne,  and 
the  laws,  were  not  more  glorious  still. 

One  means  of  reducing  litigation  by  half 
would  be  to  pay  lawyers  only  when  they 
won  their  case.  But  I  have  never  been  able 
to  impress  this  idea  on  the  Council  of  State. 

Treaties  are  observed  as  long  as  they  are 
in  harmony  with  interests. 

I  wish  that  property  in  mines,  once  con- 
ceded, should  become  the  same  as  other 
kinds  of  property;  that  contests  regarding 

[97] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

it  should  be  submitted  to  the  ordinary 
courts,  and  that  we  entrust  the  duty  of 
thoroughly  working  the  mines  to  the  interest 
of  the  individuals  who  will  come  to  own 
them  in  perpetuity.  Fathers  will  be  stim- 
ulated by  the  interests  of  their  children. 
That  is  the  disposition  of  the  human  heart. 
The  whole  world  builds  palaces  and  plants 
trees  for  the  generations  to  come.  Mine 
owners  would  recognize  that  instead  of  dig- 
ging from  the  surface,  it  is  necessary  to 
drive  levels.  They  will  not  want  to  forfeit 
the  advantages  of  a  comprehensive  system 
of  future  development  for  a  trifling  and 
temporary  advantage. 

The  national  character  makes  it  necessary 
that  the  liberty  of  the  press  be  limited  to 
works  of  a  substantial  character.  News- 
papers should  be  subjected  to  severe  police 
regulations  (See  Note  27). 

A  people  which  is  able  to  say  everything 
becomes  able  to  do  everything. 

It  is  conceivable  that  among  a  people 
where  public  opinion  must  influence  every- 

[98] 


Administration 


thing,  where  it  rightfully  affects  all  minis- 
terial acts,  and  the  deliberations  of  great 
state  councils,  that  the  press  should  be  ab- 
solutely free.  But  our  form  of  government 
does  not  call  on  the  people  to  take  part  in 
political  affairs.  It  is  the  Senate,  the  Coun- 
cil of  State,  and  the  Corps  Legislative  which 
think,  which  speak,  and  which  act  for 
them.  In  the  English  system,  public  opin- 
ion controls  the  government.  The  press, 
therefore,  ought  not  to  be  prevented  from 
criticising  ministers,  and  censuring  their 
acts.  The  disastrous  effects  of  this  are  bal- 
anced by  the  institutions  and  the  manners 
of  the  nation. 

After  all,  even  in  England,  what  benefits 
result  from  this  license  of  the  press  against 
men  in  office?  Does  it  reform  them?  Does 
it  correct  their  morals?  On  the  contrary, 
certain  to  be  attacked  whatever  may  be 
their  conduct,  the  great,  acting  openly  and 
without  scruple,  permit  the  torrent  of  criti- 
cism, and  become  all  the  more  corrupt. 

Newspapers  ought  to  be  reduced  to  hand- 
bills. 

[99] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Diplomacy  is  the  police  in  grand  costume. 

Advice  to  diplomats:  In  your  conversa- 
tion carefully  avoid  everything  that  might 
offend.  Do  not  utter  criticism  of  any  cus- 
tom, nor  write  any  ridicule.  Every  people 
has  its  own  customs,  and  it  is  too  much  the 
habit  of  the  French  to  compare  everything 
with  their  own,  and  to  offer  themselves  as 
models.  That  is  a  bad  step  which  will  hin- 
der your  success  by  rendering  you  unbear- 
able in  every  society. 

As  a  woman  of  the  old  aristocracy  could 
even  give  her  body  to  a  plebian,  and  not 
disclose  to  him  the  secrets  of  the  aristocracy, 
so  men  accustomed  to  the  usages  of  good 
society  are  alone  the  only  possible  ambas- 
sadors. 

Where  treaties  are  concerned,  an  ambas- 
sador should  take  advantage  of  everything 
to  work  for  the  benefit  of  his  country. 

I  would  prefer  that  French  ambassadors 
should  not  have  any  privileges  abroad,  and 
that  they  should  be  arrested  if  they  did  not 
[100] 


Administration 


pay  their  debts,  or  if  they  conspired,  rather 
than  give  privileges  to  foreign  ambassadors 
in  prance  where  they  are  more  easily  able 
to  conspire,  because  France  is  a  Republic. 
The  people  of  France  are  unsophisticated 
enough.  It  is  not  necessary  to  increase  the 
importance  in  their  eyes  of  ambassadors 
whom  they  already  look  on  as  worth  ten 
times  as  much  as  another  man.  It  will  be 
better  to  say  nothing  about  it.  The  nation 
already  has  too  much  consideration  for  for- 
eigners. 

I  do  not  maintain  that  the  ceremonies  of 
interment  should  be  entirely  free  to  people 
of  small  means,  for  their  pride  would  pre- 
vent them  from  asking  this  favor.  But  it 
should  be  so  that  those  who  have  this  sort 
of  vanity  could  gratify  it  cheaply.  I  also 
want  the  cemeteries  embellished  with  chap- 
els and  other  customary  ornaments. 

I  want  the  Bank  of  France  (See  Note  28) 
to  be  just  enough  in  the  hands  of  the  gov- 
ernment and  not  too  much.  I  do  not  ask 
that  it  lend  the  government  money,  but  that 
it  provide  facilities  for  realizing  on  its 
EIOI] 


•Nafi  clean  in  His  Own  Words 

revenue  cheaply,  and  at  convenient    times 
and  places. 

It  is  a  sound  principle  that  commands  and 
garrisons  should  be  changed  from  time  to 
time.  The  interest  of  the  state  requires  that 
there  shall  be  no  irremovable  places.  The 
thought  of  unity  should  be  confined  to  the 
unity  of  the  Godhead. 

Among  those  who  have  learned  their 
trades  by  practice,  it  is  not  easy  to  secure 
simplicity;  the  formalities  of  the  Council  of 
State  prevented  much  simplification. 

Foreign  commerce,  infinitely  below  manu- 
factures and  agriculture  in  its  results,  arises 
out  of  them,  while  they  do  not  arise  out  of 
it.  The  interest  of  these  three  essential 
bases  of  the  prosperity  of  nations  are  diver- 
gent, and  often  opposed  to  each  other.  They 
ought  to  be  aided  in  the  order  of  their 
national  importance. 

The  famous  doctrine  of  laissez  faire,  lais- 
ser  passer  (See  Note  29),  will  prove  dan- 
gerous if  accepted  in  too  literal  a  manner. 

[102] 


Administration 


It  is  necessary  to  act  on  this  maxim  with 
prudence  and  discrimination. 

It  is  by  comparison  and  example  that 
agriculture,  like  all  the  other  arts,  must  be 
perfected.  In  the  departments  which  are 
still  backward  in  methods  of  cultivation,  the 
more  well-to-do  land  owners  should  be  in- 
duced to  send  their  children  to  study  the 
methods  in  use  in  the  departments  where 
agriculture  is  flourishing;  and  they  can  be 
induced  to  do  so  by  encomiums  and  honors. 

I  attach  a  great  deal  of  importance,  and 
a  high  ideal  of  glory,  to  the  abolition  of 
mendicancy. 

The  emigres  (See  Note  30)  who  left 
France  are  more  interesting  than  the  men 
of  the  same  class  who  did  not  go  out,  for 
they  had  the  courage  then  to  make  war,  and 
today  to  make  peace. 

I  want  to  take  up  the  subject  of  Receivers 
General.  They  get  altogether  too  much. 
The  Receiver  General  of  Aisne,  for  example, 
makes  more  than  a  hundred  thousand  francs 


Napoleon  in  His  O<wn  Words 

a  year.  It  is  scandalous.  Half  the  Receiv- 
ers General  make  that  much.  The  other 
half  make  from  forty  to  fifty  thousand 
francs  a  year  at  the  least. 

I  seek  in  vain  where  to  place  the  limits 
between  the  civil  and  the  religious  authori- 
ties. The  existence  of  such  limits  is  a 
chimera.  We  ought  to  avoid  any  reawaken- 
ing of  the  ancient  pretensions  of  the  priests 
by  these  discussions.  It  is  not  that  the 
priests  are  greatly  to  be  feared.  They  have 
lost  their  empire  never  to  regain  it.  The 
day  of  their  superiority  in  the  sciences  has 
passed  to  the  civil  order.  But  they  are  a 
body  which  has  permanent  privileges.  The 
authorities  ought  to  handle  them  with  cir- 
cumspection. 

The  monks  formed  the  militia  of  the 
Pope,  and  they  recognized  no  other  sov- 
ereign. For  the  same  reason  they  were 
more  to  be  feared  by  the  government  than 
the  secular  clergy.  The  government  is 
never  embroiled  except  by  them.  ...  I 
respect  that  which  religion  respects,  but,  as 
a  statesman,  I  am  not  able  to  fall  in  love 
[104] 


Administration 


with  the  fanaticism  of  celibacy.  Military 
fanaticism  is  the  only  kind  which  seems  to 
me  good  for  anything.  That  in  time  must 
be  destroyed.  My  principal  purpose  in  es- 
tablishing a  teaching  body  is  to  have  a 
means  of  directing  political  and  moral  opin- 
ions. This  institution  will  be  a  guarantee 
against  the  reestablishment  of  the  monks. 
There  will  be  no  more  talk  to  me  about  it. 

A  bad  law  enforced,  does  more  good  than 
a  good  law  emasculated  by  judicial  con- 
struction. 

Every  association  is  a  government  within 
the  government. 

It  is  necessary  to  govern  colonies  with 
force;  but  there  is  no  real  force  without 
justice. 

The  colonial  system  is  ended.  We  must 
hold  firmly  to  the  free  navigation  of  the 
sea,  and  to  universal  freedom  of  exchange. 

We  have  given  all  the  whites  over  to  the 
ferocity  of  the  blacks,  and  we  eveirthink  the 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

victims  ought  not  to  be  dissatisfied!  Well, 
if  I  had  been  at  Martinique  (See  Note  31) 
I  would  have  been  for  the  English,  because, 
before  all,  one  must  save  his  life.  I  am  for 
the  whites  because  I  am  white.  I  have  no 
other  reason,  and  that  is  a  good  one.  How 
was  it  possible  to  give  freedom  to  Africans, 
to  men  who  had  no  civilization,  who  did 
not  even  know  what  a  colony  was,  what 
France  was?  It  is  very  easy  to  say  that 
those  who  wanted  liberty  for  the  blacks 
wanted  bondage  for  the  whites;  but  still, 
does  anyone  believe  that  if  the  majority  of 
the  Convention  had  known  what  they  were 
doing,  and  known  the  colonies,  they  would 
have  given  freedom  to  the  blacks?  No, 
undoubtedly  very  few  persons  were  in  a 
position  to  foresee  the  results,  and  a  senti- 
ment of  humanity  always  acts  powerfully 
on  the  imagination.  But  as  a  present  mat- 
ter, to  cling  to  these  principles  still,  is  not 
good  faith;  it  is  only  pride  and  hypocrisy. 


VII 

CONCERNING    RELIGION 

THE  honest  man  never  doubts  the  exis- 
tence of  God,  for  if  reason  does  not 
suffice  to  comprehend  Him,  the  instinct  of 
the  soul  accepts  Him.  Everything  that  per- 
tains to  the  soul  is  in  sympathy  with  the 
religious  feeling. 

There  are  no  men  who  understand  them- 
selves better  than  soldiers  and  priests. 

Aristocracy  is  the  spirit  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, democracy  of  the  New. 

I  am  among  those  who  think  that  the 
pains  of  the  next  world  were  imagined  as 
a  complement  to  the  insufficient  attractions 
that  are  offered  us  there. 

The  existence  of  God  is  attested  by  every- 
thing that  appeals  to  our  imagination.    And 
if  our  eye  cannot  reach  Him  it  is  because 
[107] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

He  has  not  permitted  our  intelligence  to  go 
so  far. 

Jesus  Christ  was  the  greatest  republican. 

The  merit  of  Mahomet  is  that  he  founded 
a  religion  without  an  inferno. 

Charity  and  alms  are  recommended  in 
every  chapter  of  the  Koran  as  being  the 
most  acceptable  services,  both  to  God  and 
the  Prophet. 

It  can  be  said  of  priests,  as  has  been  said 
of  the  tongue,  that  they  are  the  worst  of 
things  or  the  best. 

The  religious  zeal  which  animates  priests, 
leads  them  to  undertake  labors  and  to  brave 
perils  which  would  be  far  beyond  the  pow- 
ers of  one  in  secular  employment. 

Conscience  is  the  most  sacred  thing  among 
men.  Every  man  has  within  him  a  still 
small  voice,  which  tells  him  that  nothing  on 
earth  can  oblige  him  to  believe  that  which 
he  does  not  believe.  The  worst  of  all  tyran- 
[108] 


Concerning  Religion 


nies  is  that  which  obliges  eighteen-twentieths 
of  a  nation  to  embrace  a  religion  contrary 
to  their  beliefs,  under  penalty  of  being  de- 
nied their  rights  as  citizens  and  of  owning 
property,  which,  in  effect,  is  the  same  thing 
as  being  without  a  country. 

The  executive  authority  ought  to  be  very 
careful  not  to  intermeddle  too  much  with 
the  affairs  of  the  clergy  and  of  the  priests. 
It  is  better  to  let  the  courts  act,  to  oppose 
robe  to  robe,  pride  of  profession  to  pride  of 
profession.  Judges,  like  priests,  are,  in  their 
way,  a  kind  of  a  body  of  theologians.  They, 
also,  have  their  maxims,  their  rules,  and 
their  canons. 

Fanaticism  must  be  put  to  sleep  before  it 
can  be  eradicated. 

The  philosophy  of  the  gospel  is  the  phi- 
losophy of  equality,  consequently  the  most 
favorable  to  republican  government. 

Priests,  in  the  genuine  spirit  of  the  gos- 
pel, ought  to  contribute  to  public  tranquility 
by  preaching  the  sound  maxims  of  charity, 
[109] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

which  are  at  the  foundation  of  religion  and 
of  the  gospel. 

Fanaticism  is  always  the  product  of  per- 
secution. 

To  enable  parish  priests  to  be  truly  use- 
ful, and  to  prevent  them  from  making  poor 
use  of  their  ministry,  I  wish  there  were 
added  to  the  course  in  theology,  a  course  in 
agriculture,  and  in  the  elements  of  law,  and 
medicine. 

Policemen  and  prisons  ought  never  to  be 
the  means  used  to  bring  men  back  to  the 
practice  of  religion. 

You  cannot  drag  a  man's  conscience  be- 
fore any  tribunal,  and  no  one  is  answerable 
for  his  religious  opinions  to  any  power  on 
earth. 

There  is  no  place  in  a  fanatic's  head 
where  reason  can  enter. 

Religious  quarrels  are  not  different  from 
political  quarrels;  for,  priests,  soldiers,  or 
[no] 


Concerning  Religion 


magistrates,  we  are  all  men.  These  quar- 
rels end  by  the  intervention  of  some  author- 
ity strong  enough  to  compel  all  parties  to 
get  together  and  make  up. 

Is  it  not  a  fact  that  the  Catholic  religion 
appeals  more  strongly  to  the  imagination  by 
the  pomp  of  its  ceremonies  than  by  the 
sublimity  of  its  doctrines?  When  you  want 
to  arouse  enthusiasm  in  the  masses,  it  is 
necessary,  above  all  things,  to  appeal  to  their 
eyes. 

The  sovereignty  of  the  people,  liberty, 
and  equality,  these  are  the  code  of  the 
gospel. 

It  is  contrary  to  divine  right  to  prevent  a 
man,  who  needs  to  work  on  Sunday  the 
same  as  other  days  of  the  week,  from  work- 
ing on  Sunday,  in  order  to  earn  his  bread. 
The  government  has  no  right  to  enact  such 
a  law,  unless  it  gives  bread  gratis  to  those 
who  have  none.  For  my  part,  if  I  under- 
took to  interfere  in  the  matter,  I  would  be 
more  disposed  to  order  that  after  the  hours 
of  service  on  Sundays,  the  shops  should  be 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

opened,  and  that  workmen  should  take  up 
their  work. 

In  religion  everything  ought  to  be  free 
and  for  the  people.  The  requirement  of 
paying  at  the  door,  or  of  paying  for  seats,  is 
something  revolting.  The  poor  ought  not  to 
be  punished  simply  because  they  are  poor 
in  that  which  consoles  them  for  their  pov- 
erty. I  have  never  been  willing  that  tickets 
of  admittance  to  my  chapel  should  be  issued. 
I  have  always  wanted  the  seats  open  to  the 
first  comers. 

The  church  ought  to  be  in  the  state,  and 
not  the  state  in  the  church. 

One  crushes  a  religious  nation,  one  does 
not  undermine  it. 

The  populace  judges  of  the  power  of  God 
by  the  power  of  the  priests. 

I  do  not  see  in  religion  the  mystery  of 
the  incarnation  so  much  as  the  mystery  of 
the  social  order.  It  introduces  into  the 
thought  of  heaven  an  idea  of  equalization, 

[112] 


Concerning  Religion 


which  saves  the  rich  from  being  massacred 
by  the  poor. 

It  is  with  water,  and  not  with  oil,  that 
theological  volcanoes  are  put  out. 

A  parish  priest  ought  to  be  a  natural 
peacemaker,  the  chief  moral  influence  of 
his  people. 

Knowledge  and  history  are  the  enemies 
of  religion. 

Fanaticism  is  not  the  enemy  most  to  be 
feared,  but  atheism. 

Religion  is,  after  all,  a  sort  of  inocula- 
tion, or  vaccination,  which,  in  satisfying  our 
love  of  the  marvelous,  indemnifies  us  against 
charlatans  and  magicians.  Priests  are  worth 
more  than  the  Cagliostros  (See  Note  32), 
the  Kants  (See  Note  33),  and  all  the  dream- 
ers of  Germany. 

Man's  uneasiness  is  such,  that  the  vague- 
ness and  the  mystery  which  religion  pre- 
sents, are  absolutely  necessary  to  him. 


Napoleon  in  His  O<wn  Word's 

The  atheist  is  a  better  subject  than  the 
fanatic;  one  obeys,  the  other  kills. 

To  fear  death  is  to  make  profession  of 
atheism. 

The  intellectual  anarchy  which  we  are 
undergoing  is  the  result  of  the  moral  anar- 
chy, the  extinction  of  faith,  the  negation 
of  principles,  which  have  preceded. 

Philosophers  vainly  strive;  they  would 
establish  systems,  but  they  search  in  vain  a 
better  doctrine  than  that  of  Christianity, 
which  has  reconciled  man  with  himself,  in- 
sured the  peace  and  public  order  of  nations, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  happiness  and  the 
hope  of  individuals. 

Man  loves  the  marvelous.  It  has  an  irre- 
sistible charm  for  him.  He  is  always  ready 
to  leave  that  with  which  he  is  familiar  to 
pursue  vain  inventions.  He  lends  himself 
to  his  own  deception. 

Our  credulity  is  a  part  of  the  imperfec- 
tion of  our  natures.  It  is  inherent  in  us  to 


Concerning  Religion 


desire  to  generalize,  when  we  ought,  on  the 
contrary,  to  guard  ourselves  very  carefully 
from  this  tendency. 

Who  knows  if  the  happiness  of  today 
may  not  be  the  misfortune  of  the  morrow? 
Religion  offers  consolation  in  all  phases  of 
life.  One  is  less  unhappy  when  one  believes. 
One  finds  from  the  very  fact  of  belief,  the 
strength  within  himself  to  support  unhappi- 
ness. 

The  Christian  religion  will  always  be  the 
most  solid  support  of  every  government 
clever  enough  to  use  it. 


VIII 

WAR 

THERE  are  only  two  kinds  of  plans  of 
campaign,  the  good  and  the  bad.    The 
good  fail  nearly  always  through  unforeseen 
circumstances,   which  often  make  the  bad 
succeed. 

A  general  must  be  a  charlatan. 

Unhappy  the  general  who  comes  on  the 
field  of  battle  with  a  system. 

The  glory  and  honor  of  arms  must  be 
the  first  consideration  of  a  general  in  giving 
battle,  the  safety  and  the  conservation  of 
his  men  is  only  secondary.  But  it  is  often 
in  the  audacity,  in  the  steadfastness,  of  the 
general  that  the  safety  and  the  conserva- 
tion of  his  men  is  found. 

The  gesture  of  a  beloved  general  is  worth 
more  than  a  clever  speech. 
[116] 


War 

A  military  man  must  have  character  as 
well  as  brains.  Men  who  have  brains  but 
little  character  have  no  business  in  the  pro- 
fession of  arms.  It  is  like  a  ship  with  too 
much  sail  for  its  hull.  It  is  better  to  have 
character  and  not  so  much  brains.  Men 
who  are  only  moderately  supplied  with 
brains,  but  who  have  character,  often  suc- 
ceed in  this  trade.  You  have  got  to  have 
as  much  base  as  height.  The  man  who  has 
plenty  of  brains,  and  character  in  the  same 
degree,  he  is  a  Caesar,  a  Hannibal,  a  Tu- 
renne  (See  Note  34),  a  Prince  Eugene,  or 
a  Frederick  the  Great. 

Inevitable  wars  are  always  just. 

The  military  principles  of  Caesar  were 
those  of  Hannibal,  and  those  of  Hanni- 
bal were  those  o>f  Alexander  —  to  hold  his 
forces  in  hand,  not  to  be  vulnerable  at  any 
point,  to  throw  all  his  forces  with  rapidity 
on  any  given  point. 

The  presence  of  the  general  is  necessary; 
he  is  the  head,  he  is  everything  in  an 
army.  It  was  not  the  Roman  army  which 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

reduced  Gaul,  but  Caesar.  It  was  not  the 
Carthaginian  army  which  held  the  Repub- 
lican army  trembling  at  the  gates  of  Rome, 
but  Hannibal. 

An  army  which  cannot  be  reen  forced  is 
already  defeated  (See  Note 


A  commander  in  chief  ought  to  say  to 
himself  several  times  a  day:  If  the  enemy 
should  appear  on  my  front,  on  my  right, 
on  my  left,  what  would  I  do?  And  if  the 
question  finds  him  uncertain,  he  is  not  well 
placed,  he  is  not  as  he  should  be,  and  he 
should  remedy  it. 

During  a  campaign  no  commander  should 
sleep  under  a  roof;  and  there  should  be 
only  one  tent,  that  of  the  general  in  chief, 
necessary  on  account  of  the  clerical  work 
to  be  done. 

Military  science  is  the  calculation  of 
masses  on  given  points. 

The  force  of  any  army,  like  momentum 
in  mechanics,  is  represented  by  the  mass 


War  

multiplied  by  the  rate  of  movement.  A 
rapid  inarch  adds  to  the  morale  of  an  army; 
it  increases  its  means  of  victory. 

Nothing  is  more  important  in  war  than 
singleness  in  command.  So  also  when  war 
is  made  against  a  single  power  it  is  only 
necessary  to  have  a  single  army,  acting  ac- 
cording to  a  single  plan,  and  led  by  a,  single 
chief. 

It  is  imagination  which  loses  battles. 

The  moment  of  greatest  peril  is  the  mo- 
ment of  victory. 

At  the  beginning  of  a  campaign  it  is 
important  to  consider  whether  or  not  to 
move  forward;  but  when  one  has  taken 
the  offensive  it  is  necessary  to  maintain  it 
to  the  last  extremity.  However  skilfully 
effected  a  retreat  may  be,  it  always  lessens 
the  morale  of  an  army,  since  in  losing  the 
chances  of  success,  they  are  remitted  to  the 
enemy.  A  retreat,  moreover,  costs  much 
more  in  men  and  materials  than  the  blood- 
iest engagements,  with  this  difference,  also, 

[119] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

that  in  a  battle  the  enemy  loses  practically 
as  much  as  you  do;  while  in  a  retreat  you 
lose  and  he  does  not. 

Changing  from  the  defensive  to  the 
offensive,  is  one  of  the  most  delicate  opera- 
tions in  war. 

An  army  ought  to  be  ready  every  mo- 
ment to  offer  all  the  resistance  of  which  it 
is  capable. 

Never  march  by  flank  in  front  of  an 
army  in  position.  This  principle  is  absolute. 

The  keys  of  a  fortress  are  worth  the 
liberty  of  its  garrison  when  it  has  resolved 
not  to  surrender  itself.  Thus  it  is  always 
more  advantageous  to  grant  honorable 
terms  of  capitulation  to  a  garrison  which 
has  shown  a  vigorous  resistance,  than  to 
risk  the  chances  of  an  assault. 

Soldiers  ought  to  be  encouraged  by  all 
means  to  remain  with  the  colors.  This  will 
be  easily  accomplished  by  showing  high 
esteem  for  old  soldiers.  Pay  ought  to  be 

[120] 


War 

increased  with  years  of  service.  It  is  a 
great  injustice  not  to  pay  a  veteran  more 
than  a  recruit. 

In  war,  as  in  love,  in  order  to  take  a 
decisive  part,  one  must  be  right  there. 

The  art  of  a  general  of  the  advance  guard 
or  of  the  rear  guard,  is,  without  compromisr 
ing  himself  too  far,  to  hold  the  enemy,  to 
retard  him,  to  delay  him  three  or  four  hours 
in  making  a  league.  To  accomplish  these 
important  results  is  a  matter  of  tactics,  and 
more  essential  in  cavalry  command  than  in 
infantry,  and  in  advance  or  rear  guard  posi- 
tions than  in  any  other. 

In  a  battle,  as  in  a  siege,  the  art  consists 
in  concentrating  very  heavy  fire  on  a  par- 
ticular point.  The  line  of  battle  once  estab- 
lished, the  one  who  has  the  ability  to  con- 
centrate an  unlocked  for  mass  of  artillery 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly  on  one  of  these 
points  is  sure  to  carry  the  day. 

Generals  who  hold  fresh  troops  for  the 
morrow  of  the  battle,  are  nearly  always 

[121] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

beaten.  One  must  use  all  his  forces  to  the 
very  last  man,  if  any  purpose  is  served  by 
it,  for  on  the  morrow  of  a  complete  success 
one  has  no  obstacles  before  him;  the  force 
of  prestige  alone  will  assure  new  triumphs 
to  the  victor. 

Dealing  constantly  with  even  the  most 
violent  facts,  involves  less  wear  on  the 
heart  than  dealing  with  abstractions;  mili- 
tary men,  therefore/have  an  advantage  over 
lawyers. 

There  is  a  joy  in  danger. 

War  is  a  serious  game  in  which  a  man 
risks  his  reputation,  his  troops,  and  his 
country.  A  sensible  man  will  search  him- 
self to  know  whether  or  not  he  is  fitted  for 
the  trade. 

No  man  will  seek  epaulettes  on  the  field 
of  battle,  when  he  can  get  them  in  an  ante- 
chamber. 

Nothing  can  excuse  a  general  for  profiting 
by  information  gained  in  the  service  of  his 
[122] 


War 

country  to  fight  it  and  deliver  its  ramparts 
to  foreigners.  This  is  a  crime  condemned 
by  religion,  morality,  and  honor. 

War  is  a  natural  state. 

A  general-in-chief  should  give  repose  to 
neither  victors  nor  vanquished. 

There  is  only  one  favorable  moment  in 
war;  talent  consists  in  knowing  how  to 
seize  it. 

Coolness  is  the  greatest  quality  in  a  man 
destined  to  command. 

The  mind  of  a  good  general  ought  to 
resemble  in  clearness  the  lens  of  a  field- 
glass. 

He  who  cannot  look  over  a  battlefield 
with  a  dry  eye,  causes  the  death  of  many 
men  uselessly. 

In  war,  the  chief  alone  understands  the 
importance  of  certain  things,  and  he  alone 
is  able  by  his  will,  and  by  his  superior  in- 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

formation,   to   vanquish   and   surmount  all 
difficulties. 

In  war,  theory  is  all  right  so  far  as  general 
principles  are  concerned;  but  in  reducing 
general  principles  to  practice  there  will 
always  be  danger.  Theory  and  practice  are 
the  axis  about  which  the  sphere  of  accom- 
plishment revolves. 

There  are  some  cases  where  the  expend- 
iture of  men  is  an  economy  of  blood. 

The  secret  of  great  battles  consists  in 
knowing  how  to  deploy  and  concentrate  at 
the  right  time. 

Information  obtained  from  prisoners 
ought  to  be  accepted  only  at  its  real  value. 
A  soldier  sees  nothing  beyond  his  own  com- 
pany; and  an  officer  is  able,  at  the  most,  to 
give  an  account  of  the  position,  or  of  the 
movements,  of  the  division  to  which  his  reg- 
iment belonged.  And  the  general-in-chief 
ought  to  take  into  consideration  the  admis- 
sions torn  from  prisoners  only  when  they 
are  consistent  with  the  reports  of  the  ad- 
[124] 


_  War  _ 

vance  guard,  in  order  to  fortify  his  con- 
jectures as  to  the  position  of  the  enemy. 

The  art  of  war  consists  in  being  always 
able,  even  with  an  inferior  army,  to  have 
stronger  forces  than  the  enemy  at  the  point 
of  attack  or  the  point  which  is  attacked 
(See  Note 


The  praises  of  enemies  are  always  to  be 
suspected.  A  man  of  honor  will  not  permit 
himself  to  be  flattered  by  them,  except  when 
they  are  given  after  the  cessation  of  hostil- 
ities. 

Prisoners  of  war  do  not  belong  to  the 
power  for  whom  they  have  fought;  they 
are  wholly  under  the  safeguard  of  the  honor 
and  generosity  of  the  nation  which  has  dis- 
armed them. 

Read,  and  re-read  the  campaigns  of 
Alexander  the  Great,  Hannibal,  Caesar, 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  Turenne,  Prince  Eu- 
gene, and  of  Frederick  the  Great;  model 
yourself  after  them;  that  is  the  only  means 
of  becoming  a  great  captain  and  of  surpris- 
[125] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

ing  the  secrets  of  the  art  of  war.  Your 
genius  enlightened  by  this  study,  you  will 
then  reject  every  maxim  contradictory  to 
those  of  these  great  men. 

The  most  desirable  quality  in  a  soldier  is 
constancy  in  the  support  of  fatigue;  valor 
is  only  secondary. 

There  are  five  things  which  a  soldier  must 
never  part  with:  his  gun,  his  cartridges, 
his  haversack,  provisions  for  four  days  at 
least,  and  his  trench  tool. 

Nothing  augments  a  battalion  like  suc- 
cess. 

An  army  is  a  nation  which  obeys. 

Policy  and  morals  concur  in  repressing 
pillage. 

The  best  soldier  is  not  so  much  the  one 
who  fights  as  the  one  who  marches. 

As  a  result  of  holding  councils  of  war 
there  happens  what  has   always  happene4 
[126] 


War 

from  the  beginning  of  time,  we  end  by 
resigning  ourselves  to  the  worst,  which,  in 
war,  is  nearly  always  the  most  pusillanimous 
part. 

Gentleness,  good  treatment,  honor  the 
victor  and  dishonor  the  vanquished,  who 
should  remain  aloof  and  owe  nothing  to 
pity. 

In  war,  audacity  is  the  finest  calculation 
of  genius. 

When  once  the  flames  of  civil  war  break 
out,  military  chiefs  are  only  the  means  of 
victory;  it  is  the  crowd  that  governs. 

In  the  wars  of  parties,  defeat  perma- 
nently discourages;  it  is  therefore  in  civil 
wars  especially,  that  good  fortune  is  nec- 
essary. 

In  civil  war  it  is  not  given  to  every  man 
to  know  how  to  conduct  himself.  There  is 
something  more  than  military  prudence 
necessary;  there  is  need  of  sagacity  and  the 
knowledge  of  men. 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

Give  yourself  all  the  chances  of  success, 
when  you  plan  to  engage  in  a  great  battle, 
especially  if  your  opponent  is  a  great  cap- 
tain; for  if  you  are  beaten,  if  you  should  be 
in  the  midst  of  your  stores,  near  your  forti- 
fied places,  unhappy  the  vanquished. 

Privation  and  misery  are  the  real  in- 
structors of  the  soldier. 

Nothing  is  so  contrary  to  military  rules 
as  to  make  the  strength  of  your  army 
known,  either  in  the  orders  of  the  day,  in 
proclamations,  or  in  the  newspapers.  When 
one  is  led  to  speak  of  his  force  he  should 
exaggerate  their  number,  making  the  num- 
ber formidable  by  doubling  or  trebling  it; 
and,  on  the  contrary,  when  one  speaks  of 
the  force  of  the  enemy,  one  ought  to  dimin- 
ish their  number  by  a  half  or  a  third;  all  is 
fair  in  war. 

Courage  is  like  love;  it  must  have  hope 
for  nourishment. 

War  is  a  lottery  in  which  nations  ought 
to  risk  nothing  but  small  amounts. 


War 

War  is  above  all  else  an  affair  of  skill. 

In  war  a  great  disaster  always  indicates  a 
great  culprit. 

The  man  of  genius  always  recovers  him- 
self after  a  fault  as  after  a  misfortune. 

The  French  nation  has  never  been  van- 
quished when  united. 

Our  troops  go  forward  spontaneously. 
A  war  of  invasion  pleases  them.  But  a 
standstill  defensive  does  not  fit  in  with  the 
French  genius. 

There  is  but  one  honorable  way  to  be 
made  a  prisoner  of  war.  That  is  to  be 
taken  singly,  and  without  being  able  to  use 
one's  weapons.  Then  there  is  nothing  else 
to  be  done ;  one  yields  to  necessity. 

Achilles  was  the  son  of  a  goddess  and  of 
a  mortal;  in  that,  he  is  the  image  of  the 
genius  of  war.  The  divine  part  is  all  that 
that  is  derived  from  moral  considerations  of 
character,  talent,  the  interest  of  your  ad- 
[  129  ] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

versary,  of  opinion,  of  the  temper  of  the 
soldier,  which  is  strong  and  victorious,  or 
feeble  and  beaten,  according  as  he  believes 
this  divine  part  to  be.  The  mortal  part  is 
the  arms,  the  fortifications,  the  order  of 
battle  —  everything  which  arises  out  of  ma- 
terial things. 

In  war  any  commander  of  a  fortress  who 
yields  it  a  moment  sooner  than  he  is  obliged 
to,  deserves  death. 

Alarms  dampen  spirits  and  paralyze 
courage. 

When  a  city  is  in  a  state  of  siege,  a 
military  commander  becomes  a  sort  of 
magistrate  and  must  conduct  himself  with 
moderation  and  the  decency  which  the  cir- 
cumstances require. 

To  violate  military  agreements  is  to  re- 
nounce civilization;  it  is  to  put  one's  self 
on  the  level  of  the  Bedouin  of  the  desert. 

The  principle  of  all  negotiations  for  an 
armistice  is  that  each  shall  remain  in  the 

[130] 


War 

situation  in  which  the  armistice  finds  him. 
The  rights  of  all  follow  from  the  application 
of  this  principle. 

Of  all  men,  the  soldier  is  the  most  sensible 
to  benefits. 

When  a  nation  has  no  records  for  enroll- 
ment, and  no  principle  of  military  organ- 
ization, it  is  very  hard  for  it  to  organize  an 
army. 

For  the  brave  a  gun  is  only  the  handle  of 
a  bayonet. 

When  a  soldier  has  been  disgraced  and 
dishonored  by  being  flogged,  he  cares  little 
for  the  glory  and  honor  of  his  country. 

Intrepid  men  are  not  found  among  those 
who  have  something  to  lose. 

In  war,  genius  is  thought  in  action. 

When  conscription  is  no  longer  looked  on 
as  a  burden,  but  only  as  a  point  of  honor,  of 
which  each  is  jealous,  then  only  is  a  nation 
great,  glorious,  strong;  it  is  then  alone  that 

[131] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

it  is  in  a  position  to  brave  reverses,  inva- 
sions —  time  itself. 

Courage  cannot  be  counterfeited.  It  is 
one  virtue  that  escapes  hypocrisy. 

My  custom  is  to  sleep  on  the  battlefield. 

In  war  one  must  lean  on  an  obstacle  in 
order  to  overcome  it. 

No  man  has  a  place  in  the  French  army 
who  values  life  more  than  the  national  glory 
and  the  esteem  of  his  comrades. 

A  general  in  the  power  of  the  enemy  has 
no  more  orders  to  give  to  those  who  still 
fight. 

In  war,  character  and  opinion  make  more 
than  half  of  the  reality. 

If  ever  an  army  invades  England,  London 
will  not  be  able  to  resist  an  hour. 

That  dependable  courage,  which  in  spite 
of  the  most  sudden  circumstances,  neverthe- 


War 

less  allows  freedom  of  mind,  of  judgment 
and  of  decision,  is  exceedingly  rare. 

Bravery  is  an  innate  quality;  no  one  can 
give  it  to  you,  it  is  in  the  blood.  Courage 
is  a  quality  of  the  mind.  Bravery  is  often 
only  impatience  of  danger. 

War  is  becoming  an  anachronism;  if  we 
have  battled  in  every  part  of  the  continent 
it  was  because  two  opposing  social  orders 
were  facing  each  other,  the  one  which  dates 
from  1789,  and  the  old  regime.  They  could 
not  exist  together;  the -younger  devoured 
the  other.  I  know  very  well,  that,  in  the 
final  reckoning,  it  was  war  that  overthrew 
me,  me  the  representative  of  the  French 
Revolution,  and  the  instrument  of  its  prin- 
ciples. But  no'  matter !  The  battle  was  lost 
for  civilization,  and  civilization  will  inevit- 
ably take  its  revenge.  There  are  two  sys- 
tems, the  past  and 'the  future.  The  present 
is  only  a  painful  transition.  Which  must 
triumph?  The  future,  will  it  not?  Yes 
indeed,  the  future!  That  is,  intelligence, 
industry,  and  peace.  The  past  was  brute 
force,  privilege,  and  ignorance.  Each  of 

[133] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

our  victories  was  a  triumph  for  the  ideas  of 
the  Revolution.  Victories  will  be  won,  one 
of  these  days,  without  cannon,  and  without 
bayonets. 

It  is  not  that  addresses  at  the  opening  of 
a  battle  make  the  soldiers  brave.  The  old 
veterans  scarcely  hear  them,  and  recruits 
forget  them  at  the  first  boom  of  the  cannon. 
Their  usefulness  lies  in  their  effect  on  the 
course  of  the  campaign,  in  neutralizing 
rumors  and  false  reports,  in  maintaining  a 
good  spirit  in  the  camp,  and  in  furnishing 
matter  for  camp-fire  talk.  The  printed  order 
of  the  day  should  fulfill  these  different  ends. 

One  is  brave  only  for  others. 

What  are  the  conditions  that  make  for 
the  superiority  of  an  army?  Its  internal 
organization,  military  habits  in  officers  and 
men,  the  confidence  of  each  in  themselves; 
that  is  to  say,  bravery,  patience,  and  all  that 
is  contained  in  the  idea  of  moral  means. 

The  issue  of  a  battle  is  the  result  of  an 
instant,  of  a  thought.  There  is  the  advance, 

[134] 


War 

with  its  various  combinations,  the  battle  is 
joined,  the  struggle  goes  on  a  certain  time, 
the  decisive  moment  presents  itself,  a  spark 
of  genius  discloses  it,  and  the  smallest  body 
of  reserves  accomplish  victory. 

In  war,  groping  tactics,  half-way  meas- 
ures, lose  everything. 

Europe  will  never  be  tranquil  until  nat- 
ural limits  are  restored. 

The  worst  punishment  possible  in  a 
French  army  is  shame. 

A  man  who  has  no  consideration  for  the 
needs  of  his  men  ought  never  to  be  given 
command. 

Left  to  themselves,  infantry  against  cav- 
alry would  never  reach  definite  results.  But 
with  artillery,  forces  being  equal,  cavalry 
ought  to  annihilate  infantry. 

An  army  should  be  constituted  of  a  just 
proportion  of  infantry,  cavalry,  and  artil- 
lery. These  different  arms  never  take  the 

[135] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

place  of  one  another.  For  every  thousand 
men  there  should  be  four  pieces  of  artillery, 
and  cavalry  equal  to  a  fourth  of  the  in- 
fantry. 

One  ought  never  to  detach  troops  from  an 
army  on  the  eve  of  an  attack.  Conditions 
change  from  one  moment  to  another.  A 
battalion  may  decide  the  fate  of  a  day. 

The  infantry  is  the  soul  of  an  army. 

The  better  infantry  is,  the  more  necessary 
it  is  to  handle  them  well,  and  to  support 
them  with  good  batteries. 

The  strength  of  cavalry  is  in  its  impetus. 
But  it  is  not  alone  its  rapidity  which  assures 
success,  it  is  its  formation,  its  organization, 
and  the  good  employment  of  its  reserves. 

Artillery  is  more  necessary  to  cavalry 
than  to  infantry,  since  cavalry  do  not  return 
fire,  and  are  not  able  to  fight  except  with 
side  arms.  It  is  to  supplement  this  lack 
that  horse  artillery  has  been  originated. 
Cavalry  ought  always  to  have  its  batteries 


War 

with  it,  whether  it  attacks,  remains  in  posi- 
tion, or  re-forms. 

To  plan  to  reserve  cavalry  for  the  finish 
of  the  battle,  is  to  have  no  conception  of  the 
power  of  combined  infantry  and  cavalry 
charges,  either  for  attack  or  for  defense. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  dissimulate ;  I  intend 
from  this  time  to  choose  my  admirals  from 
among  the  young  officers  of  thirty-two  and 
thereabouts.  I  have  enough  frigate  captains 
with  ten  years'  experience  in  navigation  to 
be  able  to  choose  from  among  them  six,  to 
whom  I  would  be  willing  to  confide  com- 
mands. My  intention  is  to  advance  and 
develop  these  young  men  by  every  possible 
means. 

The  art  of  war  on  land  is  an  art  of  gen- 
ius, of  inspiration.  In  that  of  the  sea  there 
is  nothing  of  genius  or  inspiration.  There, 
everything  is  constant  and  according  to  ex- 
perience. The  general  of  the  sea  has  need 
of  only  one  science,  that  of  navigation.  The 
one  on  land  has  need  of  all,  or  of  a  talent 
which  is  the  equivalent  of  all,  that  will 

[137] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

enable  him  to  profit  by  all  experience,  and 
all  knowledge.  A  general  of  the  sea  has 
nothing  to  divine.  He  knows  where  his 
enemy  is,  he  knows  his  strength.  A  general 
on  land  never  knows  anything  with  cer- 
tainty, never  sees  his  enemy  well,  and  never 
knows  positively  where  he  is. 

A  general  commandant-in-chief  of  a  naval 
army,  and  a  general  commandant-in-chief 
of  an  army  on  land,  need  very  different 
qualities.  One  must  be  born  with  the  qual- 
ities necessary  for  the  latter;  while  the 
qualities  necessary  for  the  former  can  be 
acquired  only  by  experience. 

A  general-in-chief  on  the  sea  depends 
more  on  his  captains  of  vessels  than  a  gen- 
eral-in-chief on  land  does  on  his  generals. 
On  land  the  commander-in-chief  has  the 
right,  and  the  opportunity,  to  himself  take 
direct  command  of  troops,  to  support  every 
point,  and  to  remedy  any  false  movements. 
A  general  of  the  sea  has  personal  influence 
only  on  the  men  on  the  vessel  on  which  he 
happens  to  be,  the  smoke  preventing  sig- 
nals from  being  seen  on  the  others.  It  is 


War 

therefore,  of  all  callings,  that  one  wherein 
subalterns  must  take  the  most  on  themselves. 

In  order  not  to  be  astonished  at  obtaining 
victories,  one  ought  not  to  think  only  of 
defeats. 

The  loss  of  our  naval  battles  arose  from 
the  lack  of  force  in  the  generals-in-chief,  to 
their  defects  of  tactics,  and  to  the  belief  held 
by  the  captains  that  they  ought  to  act  only 
in  accordance  with  signals. 

On  land,  an  undisciplined  bravery  has 
been  able  to  win  sometimes;  on  the  sea, 
never. 

We  celebrate  a  victory,  even  while  we 
weep  over  the  fallen,  even  enemies. 

In  war,  luck  is  half  in  everything. 

My  most  splendid  campaign  was  that  of 
March  20;  not  a  single  shot  was  fired  (See 
Note  37). 

I  have  a  hundred  thousand  pensioners. 


IX 

SOCIOLOGY 

OUR  light-heartedness,  lack  of  reflec- 
tion, comes  to  us  honestly.  We  will 
always  be  Gauls.  We  will  not  place  a  true 
value  on  things  until  we  substitute  principles 
for  turbulence,  pride  for  vanity,  and  love  of 
institutions  for  love  of  places. 

In  France,  only  the  impossible  is  admired. 

I  have  shown  France  what  she  is  capable 
of;  let  her  achieve  it. 

The  distinctive  characteristic  of  our 
nation  is  that  we  are  much  too  mercurial  in 
prosperity. 

The  French  people  have  two  equally 
powerful  passions  which  seem  the  very 
opposites  of  each  other,  but  which,  neverthe- 
less, grow  out  of  the  same  sentiment.  They 
are  the  love  of  equality  and  the  love  of  dis- 
[  HO] 


Sociology 

tinctions.  A  government  can  satisfy  these 
two  needs  only  by  exact  justice.  The  law 
and  the  operation  of  government  should  be 
equal  for  all,  and  honors  and  rewards  should 
come  to  those  men  who,  in  the  eyes  of  all, 
seem  most  worthy. 

The  sentiment  of  national  honor  is  never 
more  than  half  extinguished  in  the  French. 
It  takes  only  a  spark  to  re-kindle  it. 

The  Emperor  observed  that  we  French, 
if  we  had  less  energy  than  the  Romans,  had 
more  decency.  We  would  not  have  killed 
ourselves,  as  they  did,  under  the  first 
Emperors,  but  we  would  not  have  shown 
all  the  turpitude,  all  the  servility,  that  was 
displayed  under  the  last.  "  Even  in  our 
most  corrupt  moments,"  said  he,  "  our 
baseness  was  not  without  a  certain  reserve/' 

The  French  nation  is  easily  governed  if 
one  does  not  get  at  cross  purposes  with  it. 
Nothing  equals  its  quick  and  easy  compre- 
hension. It  distinguishes,  instantly,  those 
who  work  for  it,  and  those  who  work 
against  it.  The  appeal  must  always  be  made 

[141] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own   Words 

to   its   intelligence.      Otherwise   its   inquiet 
spirit  frets  itself,  it  ferments  and  explodes. 

Credulity  has  been  the  national  charac- 
teristic of  the  French  since  the  time  of  the 
Gauls. 

If  the  Roman  people  had  made  the  same 
use  of  their  strength  that  the  French  people 
have  of  theirs,  the  Roman  Eagles  would 
still  surmount  the  Capital,  and  eighteen 
centuries  of  slavery  and  of  tyranny  would 
not  have  dishonored  the  human  species. 

Without  a  navy,  France  is  exposed  to  all 
sorts  of  insults. 

Every  system  finds  apologists  in  France. 

The  French  complain  of  everything,  and 
always. 

France  loves  change  too  much  for  any 
government  to  endure  there. 

With  a  sincere  ally,  France  will  be  mis- 
tress of  the  world. 


Sociology 

When  I  learn  that  a  nation  can  live  with- 
out bread,  then  I  will  believe  that  the  French 
people  can  live  without  glory. 

The  French  are,  perhaps,  the  only  nation 
in  which  all  ranks  of  society,  can  be  moved 
equally  strongly  by  means  of  honor. 

I  would  like  the  title  of  Frenchman  to  be 
the  finest,  the  most  desirable,  in  the  world; 
that  every  Frenchman  traveling  anywhere 
in  Europe  should  believe  himself,  should 
find  himself,  always  among  friends. 

There  is  nothing  which  you  cannot  get 
from  the  French  by  the  lure  of  danger.  It 
seems  to  give  them  spirit. 

It  is  a  part  of  the  French  character  to 
exaggerate,  to  complain,  and  to  distort 
everything  when  dissatisfied. 

Among  the  English,  the  higher  classes 
have  pride;  among  us,  unfortunately,  they 
have  only  vanity.  Herein  is  the  great  and 
characteristic  difference  between  the  two 
people.  The  great  mass  of  our  people,  today 

[i43] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

at  least  (1816),  constitute  that  people  of 
Europe  in  which  the  national  sentiment  is 
strongest.  It  has  profited  by  its  twenty-five 
years  of  revolution;  but,  unfortunately,  the 
class  which  the  Revolution  has  raised  has 
not  responded  in  any  degree  to  its  new 
destinies.  It  has  shown  only  corruption  and 
versatility.  It  has  displayed  in  these  last 
crises  neither  talent  nor  character  nor  vir- 
tue. It  has  lost  the  honor  of  the  nation  (See 
Note  38). 

Valor,  the  love  of  glory,  is  an  instinct,  a 
sort  of  sixth  sense,  with  the  French.  Many 
a  time  in  the  heat  of  battle,  my  attention 
has  been  arrested  by  the  sight  of  a  young 
conscript,  in  his  first  engagement,  throwing 
himself  into  the  struggle.  Honor  and  cour- 
age seemed  to  exude  from  every  pore. 

France  will  always  be  a  great  nation. 

The  Turks  can  be  killed,  but  they  can 
never  be  conquered. 

No  one  saw  in  my  war  in  Spain  the  pos- 
session of  the  Mediterranean. 
[  144] 


Sociology 


Europe  is  a  molehill.  It  has  never  had 
any  great  empires,  like  those  of  the  Orient, 
numbering  six  hundred  million  souls. 

Antwerp  is  ever  a  loaded  pistol  aimed  at 
the  heart  of  England. 

England  is  the  only  power  whose  interest 
it  is  that  France  shall  not  have  Belgium ;  and 
as  long  as  England  will  not  allow  France  to 
possess  that  country,  there  is  no  sincerity 
in  her  alliance. 

Whoever  possesses  Constantinople  ought 
to  rule  the  world. 

When  the  Russians  make  themselves 
masters  of  Constantinople,  they  will  be  able 
to  retain  as  many  Moslems  there  as  they 
care  to,  by  assuring  them  of  their  property 
rights,  and  tolerating  their  religion.  The 
Moors  of  Spain  submitted  to  everything, 
even  the  inquisition,  and  it  took  an  order 
from  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  to  expel  them. 

I  have  inplanted  in  the  Italians  principles 
which  will  never  be  eradicated,  but  which 

[145] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

will  go  on  forever  working  out  their  natural 
results. 

It  will  take  a  skilful  legislator  to  develop 
a  taste  for  arms  among  the  Italians. 

One  of  my  cherished  thoughts  has  been 
to  reunite  and  reestablish,  geographically, 
the  peoples  which  revolutions  and  politics 
have  broken  up  and  parcelled  out.  There 
are  in  Europe  thirty  million  French,  fifteen 
million  Spaniards,  fifteen  million  Italians, 
thirty  million  Germans,  and  twenty  million 
Poles  ;  I  would  make  of  each,  one  nation. 
The  impulse  has  been  given,  each  of  these 
results  will  be  accomplished;  and  it  is  my 
thought  which  will  have  served  the  future 
destiny  of  Europe  (See  Note 


Europe  has  its  history,  often  tragic, 
though  at  intervals  consoling.  But  to  speak 
of  any  universally  recognized  national  rights 
or  that  these  rights  have  played  any  part  in 
its  history,  is  to  play  with  the  powers  of 
public  credulity.  Always  the  first  duty  of  a 
state  has  been  its  safety;  the  pledge  of  its 
safety,  its  power;  and  the  limits  of  its  power, 


Sociology 

that  intelligence  of  which  each  has  been 
made  the  depository.  When  the  great  pow- 
ers have  proclaimed  any  other  principle,  it 
has  been  only  for  their  own  purposes,  and 
the  smaller  powers  have  never  received  any 
benefit  from  it.  Poland,  Venice,  have  dis- 
appeared from  the  earth  as  states,  while  the 
assembled  spectators  have  seen  in  these 
political  funerals  nothing  but  their  own  loss. 
Whenever  there  has  been  a  partition  of 
spoils,  or  compensation  given  in  lieu  of  them, 
there  has  been  no  suggestion  of  ambition. 
But  these  compensations,  though  they  have 
always  been  exacted  in  the  name  of  justice, 
have  always,  in  fact,  been  in  the  name  of 
force.  That  is  all  there  is  of  reality  in  the 
pretended  European  Code.  That  is  what  our 
modern  statesmen  have  called  their  "  balance 
of  power,"  a  ridiculous  term  which,  to  the 
wars  engendered  by  pure  ambition,  has 
added  other  wars.  It  is  a  mistaken  theory 
which  has  furnished  pretext  for  many  iniq- 
uities, but  which  has  saved  the  weak,  only 
when  the  strong  have  not  known  just  how  to 
get  around  it.  From  this  so-called  great  prin- 
ciple there  have  followed  two  things,  each 
historically  true.  One  is  that  each  state 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 

claims  the  right  to  control  interests  foreign 
to  itself  when  those  interests  are  such  that 
it  can  control  them  without  putting  its  own 
interests  in  danger.  The  other  principle  is 
that  the  other  powers  only  recognize  this 
right  of  intervening  in  proportion  as  the 
country  doing  it  has  the  power  to  do  it. 


NOTES 


Note  I. —  Napoleon  gave  the  seal  of  sincerity 
to  this  extremely  cynical  philosophy,  by  his  ejacu- 
lation, "  Oh,  well ;  a  rival  the  less,"  when  told  of 
the  death  of  General  Kleber  by  assassination  in 
Cairo,  June  14,  1800.  Kleber  was  undoubtedly 
one  of  the  greatest  generals  of  the  French  revo- 
lutionary epoch. 

Note  2. —  This  is  generally  looked  on  as  Na- 
poleon's own  idealization  and  defense  of  himself 
and  of  his  seizure  of  power,  the  successive  steps 
by  which  he  sought  to  make  himself  the  founder 
of  a  dynasty,  and  of  the  despotic  character  of  his 
government. 

Note  3. —  Acting,  at  least  to  some  extent,  in  the 
spirit  here  enunciated,  Napoleon  in  1802  instituted 
the  Order  of  the  Legion  of  Honor.  All  previ- 
ously existing  French  military  or  religious  orders 
—  those  of  |  St.  Michael,  the  Holy  Ghost,  St. 
Louis,  and  Military  Merit,  as  well  as  the  united 
orders  of  St.  Lazarus  and  Our  Lady  of  Mount 
Carmel  had  been  abolished  at  the  Revolution. 
The  Legion  of  Honor  survived  the  restoration  of 
the  Bourbons,  indeed  was  adopted  by  them, 
though  modified  in  some  particulars,  while  the 
old  orders  were  restored.  It  has  maintained  itself 
through  all  political  changes,  and  since  the  estab- 

[149] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


lishment  of  the  Third  Republic  has  been  the  only 
military  order  in  France  —  for  it  is  essentially 
military  in  character,  though  not  strictly  confined 
to  the  recognition  of  military  merit.  It  is  con- 
ferred for  distinguished  services  of  any  kind,  and 
is  not  limited  to  citizens  of  France.  The  order 
has  occasionally  been  conferred  on  women,  as  for 
instance  on  Rosa  Bonheur,  the  painter,  and  on 
Madame  Curie,  who  with  her  husband  discovered 
radium. 

Note  4. —  The  necessity  for  a  code  in  France 
grew  out  of  the  immense  number  of  separate  sys- 
tems of  jurisprudence  existing  in  the  country  be- 
fore 1789,  justifying  Voltaire's  sarcasm  that  a 
traveler  in  France  had  to  change  laws  about  as 
often  as  he  changed  horses.  The  conception  of 
a  general  code  for  the  whole  country  had  oc- 
curred to  statesmen  and  jurists  before  Napoleon; 
and  the  Convention,  in  fact,  discussed  two  proj- 
ects presented  by  Cambaceres,  one  of  which  had 
been  found  too  complicated  and  the  other  too 
condensed. 

Napoleon,  on  becoming  Consul,  appointed  a 
commission  headed  by  M.  Tronchet  to  review 
previous  efforts  and  to  present  a  new  project. 
In  four  months  the  project  was  presented  to  the 
government,  submitted  to  the  judges,  and  dis- 
cussed by  the  Council  of  State  —  Napoleon  him- 
self taking  part  in  the  deliberations.  At  first  pub- 
lished under  the  title  of  Code  Civil  des  Francais, 
it  was  afterwards  called  the  Code  Napoleon  — 
the  Emperor  wishing  to  attach  his  name  to  a 
work  which  he  regarded  as  the  greatest  glory  of 
his  reign. 

[150] 


Notes 


The  Code  Napoleon  consists  of  2,281  articles, 
arranged  under  titles  and  divided  into  three  books, 
preceded  by  a  preliminary  title.  The  subjects  of 
the  different  books  are,  first,  "  Des  Personnes  " ; 
second,  "  Des  biens  et  des  differents  modifications 
de  la  propriete  " ;  third,  "  Des  differents  manieres 
d'acquerir  la  propriete."  It  has  passed  through 
several  changes  caused  by  the  political  vicissitudes 
of  the  country,  and  it  has,  of  course,  suffered 
from  time  to  time  important  alterations  in  sub- 
stance, but  it  still  remains  virtually  the  same  in 
principle  as  it  left  the  hands  of  its  framers. 

The  remaining  French  codes  are  the  "  Code  de 
Procedure  civile,"  "  Code  de  Commerce,"  "  Code 
d'instruction  criminelle,"  and  the  "  Code  penal." 

The  merits  of  the  Code  Napoleon  have  entered 
into  the  discussion  on  the  general  subject  of 
codification.  Austin  agrees  with  Savigny  in  con- 
demning the  ignorance  and  haste  with  which  it 
was  compiled.  "  It  contains,"  says  Austin,  "  no 
definitions  of  technical  terms  (even  the  most  lead- 
ing), no  exposition  of  the  rationale  of  distinc- 
tions (even  the  most  leading),  no  exposition  of 
the  broad  principles  and  rules  to  which  the  nar- 
rower provisions  in  the  code  are  subordinate  — 
hence  its  fallacious  brevity."  All  the  French 
Codes  have,  however,  taken  firm  root  in  most  of 
the  continental  countries  of  Europe.  Introduced 
by  French  conquest,  they  nevertheless  were 
eagerly  adopted  by  the  people  after  the  French 
arms  had  been  withdrawn. 

Note  5. —  Henry  iv  (1553-1610),  son  of  An- 
tony of  Bourbon,  King  of  Navarre,  and  Jeanne 
of  Albret,  was,  on  his  father's  side,  the  tenth  in 

[151] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


descent  from  Saint  Louis.  He  was  brought  up  a 
Calvinist  by  his  mother.  In  1571  he  married  Mar- 
garet of  Valois,  daughter  of  Catherine  de  Medici. 
He  escaped  the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  only 
by  professing  Catholicism,  but  on  his  escape 
from  court  in  1575  he  became  the  acknowledged 
head  of  the  Huguenots,  and  by  his  dashing  brav- 
ery kept  life  in  their  dispirited  forces.  He  had  all 
the  qualities  of  a  guerilla  leader,  though  he  was 
not  a  great  general.  His  conversion  to  Catholi- 
cism in  1593  proved  of  great  political  advantage, 
and  by  1598  he  had  overcome  all  important  op- 
posing influences.  He  issued  the  Edict  of  Nantes 
in  April,  1598,  and  from  that  time  on  devoted 
his  energies  to  the  restoration  of  the  country  dev- 
astated by  nearly  forty  years  of  civil  war.  The 
organizing  genius  of  Maximilian  of  Bethune, 
Duke  of  Sully,  restored  the  finances,  and  agricul- 
ture, manufactures,  and  commerce  made  mar- 
velous advances. 

Henry  was  assassinated  by  Ravaillac,  May  14, 
1610. 

Philip  iv,  known  as  Philip  the  Fair,  King  of 
France,  was  born  in  1268  and  died  in  1314.  His 
was  a  troubled  reign,  including  a  controversy 
with  Pope  Boniface  vin;  and  while  Philip  the 
Fair  in  his  personality  does  not  challenge  our 
sympathy,  he  stands  as  one  of  the  great  figures  in 
French  history.  He  is  thought  of  as  the  first 
sovereign  in  the  modern  sense.  He  made  himself 
the  head  of  both  the  temporal  power  and  the 
church  in  France,  freed  himself  in  large  degree 
from  the  feudal  lords,  increased  the  royal  domain, 
and  greatly  developed  both  administrative  and 
judicial  institutions. 

[152] 


Notes 


Note  6. —  Voltaire,  whose  real  name  was  Fran- 
cois Marie  Arouet,  was  born  in  Paris  in  1694  and 
died  there  in  1778.  He  began  to  call  himself 
Arouet  de  Voltaire,  or  simply  Voltaire,  after  his 
release  from  the  Bastille  in  April,  1718.  His 
father  was  a  prosperous  notary  from  whom  he 
inherited  a  comfortable  fortune;  and  Voltaire, 
himself,  had  the  money-making  ability,  not  wholly 
free  from  unscrupulousness,  and  amassed  a  con- 
siderable fortune.  To  his  own  age  Voltaire  was 
preeminently  a  poet  and  philosopher.  Later  ages 
have  questioned  whether  he  was  entitled  to  either 
name.  But  he  exercised  a  wonderful  influence  on 
his  own  century,  an  influence  that  was  in  many 
aspects  very  largely  beneficial.  Throughout  his 
whole  life  he  was  the  opponent  of  intolerance, 
especially  of  religious  and  political  intolerance. 
No  other  writer  has  written  on  as  great  a  variety 
of  subjects  as  he,  nor  as  much,  and  everything  he 
wrote  was  French  in  its  limpid  clearness,  ele- 
gance, precision,  and  purity  of  style.  The  most 
diametrically  opposite  opinions  have  been  held  of 
him,  but  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  he  was  one 
of  the  great  men  not  only  of  his  time  but  of  all 
times. 

Note  7. —  The  Encyclopedists  is  a  name  by 
which  the  world  designates  that  wonderful  body 
of  men,  D'Alembert,  Diderot,  Voltaire,  Montes- 
quieu, Rousseau,  and  their  associates,  who  wrote, 
edited  and  otherwise  prepared  that  marvelous 
work,  the  French  Encyclopedia,  published  during 
the  period  from  1751  to  1772.  No  encyclopedia 
perhaps  has  been  of  such  political  importance,  or 
has  occupied  so  conspicuous  a  place  in  the  civil 

[153] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


and  literary  history  of  its  century.  It  sought  not 
only  to  give  information  but  to  guide  opinion. 
It  was  theistic  but  heretical. 

It  was  opposed  to  the  church,  then  all  powerful 
in  France,  and  it  treated  dogma  historically.  It 
was  a  war  machine.  As  it  progressed,  its  attacks 
both  on  the  church  and  on  the  still  more  despotic 
government,  became  bolder  and  more  undisguised, 
and  it  was  met  by  opposition  and  persecution 
unparalleled  in  the  history  of  encyclopedias.  The 
preliminary  discourse  by  D'Alembert  printed  with 
the  first  volume  gives  an  admirable  and  compre- 
hensive view  of  the  scope  and  extent  of  human 
knowledge  as  it  existed  at  the  period  immediately 
preceding  the  French  Revolution,  and  from  this 
point  of  view  is  the  most  important  philosophic 
work  of  the  eighteenth  century.  The  Encyclo- 
pedia in  many  ways  prepared  the  way  for  the 
Revolution  by  spreading  knowledge,  awakening 
inquiry  and  intelligence,  and  by  the  direction  it 
gave  to  thought  regarding  human  rights. 

Note  8. —  Fenelon,  Francois  de  Salignac  de  la 
Mothe,  Archbishop  of  Cambray  and  one  of  the 
most  celebrated  names  in  the  intellectual  and  ec- 
clesiastical history  of  France  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  was  born  August  6,  1651,  and  died  Janu- 
ary 17,  1715.  He  came  of  a  family  ennobled 
from  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  which 
gave  many  distinguished  names  to  France.  He 
became  the  preceptor  of  the  young  Duke  of  Bur- 
gundy, a  violent  and  impetuous,  but  affectionate 
and  bright  child,  whom  he  developed  into  a  well- 
disciplined  and  promising  youth  whose  life,  if 
spared,  might  have  brought  blessing  to  France. 

[154] 


Notes 


For  the  instruction  of  his  pupil,  Fenelon  wrote, 
among  other  things,  his  celebrated  Telemaque. 
In  this  his  enemies  saw  covert  criticisms  of  the 
government  of  Louis  xiv,  and  the  publication  of 
this  work  resulted  in  his  losing  the  royal  favor. 
Out  of  the  Quietist  doctrines,  championed  by 
Madame  Guyon,  which  he  scrupled  to  condemn, 
there  grew  a  bitter  controversy  with  Bossuet,  and 
Fenelon  was  condemned  by  the  Holy  See.  He 
submitted  to  this  decision  and  spent  the  remainder 
of  his  life  in  his  diocese  in  ceaseless  works  of 
Christian  piety  and  charity,  becoming  more  hon- 
ored in  his  retirement  than  he  had  been  in  Paris. 
Fenelon  is  chiefly  remembered  for  the  beauty 
of  his  character,  his  tender  and  mystic  devotion, 
and  the  charm  of  his  style  as  a  writer.  He  is 
not  great  as  a  thinker,  nor  can  the  substance  of 
his  writings  be  said  to  have  a  permanent  value. 
But  there  is  the  same  subtle  delicacy,  sensibility, 
tenderness,  and  purity  of  expression  in  his  style 
as  in  his  character.  An  exquisite,  highly-toned, 
and  noble  genius  pervades  the  one  as  the  other. 
As  a  man  he  is  one  of  the  greatest  figures  in  a 
great  time.  As  a  writer  he  has  been  placed  in 
prose  on  the  same  level  with  Racine  in  poetry. 
In  both  there  is  the  same  full  harmony  and  clear- 
ness, the  same  combination  of  natural  grace  with 
perfect  art. 

Note  9. —  Jean  de  la  Fontaine  was  born  in 
1621  and  died  in  1695.  His  fame  as  a  poet  is 
based  on  his  tales  and  his  fables.  The  latter 
have  an  irresistible  charm  and  have  become  uni- 
versal property,  accepted  by  every  age  since 
his.  They  touch  the  most  diverse  human 

[155] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


qualities,  but  always  with  delicious  originality. 
They  are  veritable  creations.  No  one  has 
rivaled  him  in  the  exquisite  grace,  the  malicious 
good  humor,  the  simplicity,  and  naturalness  with 
which  he  makes  the  personages  of  his  fables 
speak,  nor  in  the  perfect  art  of  his  style.  While 
in  these  fables  he  has  given  expression  to  a  few 
sentiments  of  personal  egotism,  on  the  whole  his 
works  bear  the  imprint  of  the  engaging  sweetness, 
the  innocent  kindliness,  and  the  sensibility  of  his 
nature. 

Note  10. — Jean  Racine,  celebrated  French 
tragic  poet,  was  born  in  1639  and  died  in  1699. 
He  was  the  friend  of  Boileau,  La  Fontaine,  and 
Moliere.  In  some  respects  the  rival  of  Corneille, 
his  works  are  gentler,  nearer  nature,  and  more 
human  in  their  touch.  While  Corneille  sought 
complicated  plots  within  which  his  heroes  de- 
ployed their  superhuman  qualities,  Racine  sought 
simple,  clear  plots,  in  which  the  delineation  of 
passions  in  simple  fidelity  to  truth  was  his  effort. 
His  influence  on  the  French  language  of  his  time 
was  both  extensive  and  beneficial.  Among  his 
principal  tragedies  are,  Andromaque,  Britannicus, 
Mithridate,  Iphigenie,  and  Phedre,  and  the  sacred 
tragedies,  Esther,  and  Athalie. 

Note  ii. —  Tartu ffe  is  a  comedy  in  five  acts  by 
Moliere,  and  the  masterpiece  of  French  comedy. 
Tartuffe,  the  chief  character,  will  always  remain 
the  type  of  perversity  and  dissimulated  corruption 
under  an  exterior  of  respectability;  in  other 
words,  of  hypocrisy.  Many  passages  of  the  com- 
edy have  passed  into  the  language  as  proverbs. 

[156] 


Notes 


Note  12. —  Gil  Bias  is  one  of  the  most  cele- 
brated romances  in  literature.  It  was  written  by 
Alain  Rene  le  Sage,  a  Frenchman  (1668-1747), 
the  creator  of  the  romance  of  manners.  Gil  Bias, 
the  hero  of  the  story,  has  become  the  type  of  the 
well-brought-up  and  instructed  young  man  living 
constantly  by  expedients  more  or  less  doubtful, 
and  who  is  constantly  throwing  himself  into  new 
adventures. 

Note  13. —  Francois  Rene  de  Chateaubriand,  an 
illustrious  French  writer  (1768-1848),  traveled 
in  America,  returning  to  France  just  as  the  Rev- 
olution began.  He  became  an  emigre  in  1792. 
After  the  Restoration  he  was  minister  of  foreign 
affairs.  The  most  salient  qualities  of  his  style 
are  brilliancy,  wealth  of  imagination,  and  a  gor- 
geous eloquence.  He  exercised  a  considerable 
influence  on  the  development  of  romantic  litera- 
ture. Posterity  has  not  found  the  same  value  in 
his  writings  that  his  contemporaries  did.  The 
Genius  of  Christianity  is  the  work  by  which  he 
is  best  known  to  English  readers. 

Note  14. —  Jean  Francois  de  la  Harpe  (1739-' 
1803),  was  a  French  poet  and  literary  critic. 
Among  others  of  his  works  is  a  Cours  de  Lit- 
terature,  which  is  excellent,  especially  for  the 
seventeenth  century. 

Note  15. —  Madame  de  Stael  (1766-1817),  was 
the  daughter  of  the  famous  financier  Necker. 
Her  husband  was  Eric  Magnus,  Baron  of  Stael- 
Holstein,  Ambassador  of  Sweden  to  France.  Her 
marriage  was  largely  one  of  convenience.  Her 

[157] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


husband  obtained  money,  and  she  a  position;  but 
there  was  no  scandal.  They  had  three  children. 
She  was  ambitious  for  power  and  influence  in  a 
noisy  extravagant  way,  though  honest  and  sincere 
in  her  political  convictions,  which  were  liberal. 
Just  why  there  should  have  been  the  bitterness 
between  Napoleon  and  herself  it  is  hard  to  say. 
She  was  a  woman  of  influence,  and  it  doubtless 
displeased  Napoleon  that  she  should  show  herself 
recalcitrant  to  his  influence.  But  it  also  doubtless 
pleased  Madame  de  Stael  to  quite  an  equal  degree, 
that  Napoleon  should  apparently  put  forth  his 
power  to  crush  her  and  fail.  Napoleon's  course 
toward  her  was  little  creditable  to  him.  He  exiled 
her  from  France  and  he  suppressed  her  book 
Germany,  after  it  had  been  passed  by  the  censor. 
Coppet  is  a  Swiss  village  on  the  Lake  of  Geneva 
where  she  made  her  home  during  much  of  her 
exile.  Her  books,  of  which  Corinne  and  Delphine 
are  probably  the  best  known,  were  given  extrava- 
gant praise  during  her  life,  but  are  now  little 
read.  Her  son  edited  an  edition  of  her  writings 
in  seventeen  volumes.  She  counted  among  those 
whom  she  greatly  influenced,  Benjamin  Constant, 
Schlegel,  Talleyrand,  Narbonne,  Jaucourt,  Gui- 
bert,  Byron,  and  many  others.  She  was  a  re- 
markable woman  in  many  ways,  and  as  Napoleon 
said,  "  she  will  endure." 

Note  16. —  Armide  and  Clorinde,  or,  as  they  are 
known  under  the  English  spelling,  Armida  and 
Clorinda,  are  two  characters  in  Tasso's  Jerusalem 
Delivered.  Armida,  seductively  beautiful,  who 
was  sent  forth  by  the  infernal  senate  to  sow  dis- 
cord in  the  Christian  camp,  turns  the  action  of 


Notes 


the  epic.  Her  name  is  often  used  to  designate  a 
woman  who  fascinates  by  her  seductive  charms. 
Clorinda,  on  the  other  hand,  bravely  donning  ar- 
mor, like  Marfisa,  fights  in  duel  with  her  devoted 
lover,  receives  baptism  from  his  hands  in  her  pa- 
thetic death,  and  has  become  the  type  of  the 
courageous  woman  who  scorns  the  fears  and 
weaknesses  so  natural  to  her  sex. 

Note  17. —  Pierre  Augustin,  Caron  de  Beau- 
marchais,  was  born  in  Paris  in  1732  and  died  in 
1799.  He  was  the  author  of  The  Barber  of  Se- 
ville, The  Marriage  of  Figaro,  and  Mere  Coupa- 
ble,  all  of  them  audacious  dramas,  sparkling  with 
witty  lines,  full  of  movement  and  gaiety.  Beau- 
marchais  was  audacious  and  adventurous  in  char- 
acter, and  he  has  left  some  remarkable  and 
curious  Memoirs,  the  material  for  which  grew 
largely  out  of  his  controversies  with  Counsellor 
Goezman. 

Note  18. —  The  Theatre  Francaise,  or  as  it  has 
for  a  long  time  been  known,  the  Comedie  Fran- 
caise, was  founded  by  Louis  xiv  in  1680.  It  had 
exclusive  rights  until  the  Revolution,  when  the 
liberty  of  the  theatre,  among  other  liberties,  was 
proclaimed;  and  there  were  soon  no  less  than 
fifty  theatres  in  Paris.  In  1807  the  Empire  re- 
stricted the  number  to  nine,  and  reinstated  the 
Theatre  Francaise  in  sole  possession  (or  nearly 
such)  of  the  right  of  performing  the  classic 
drama. 

Note  19. —  The  Chateau,  or  Palace,  of  Ver- 
sailles was  designed  by  Mansard  for  Louis  xiv. 

f'59] 


]Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


It  was  the  favorite  residence  of  the  Bourbons  for 
a  hundred  years.  The  States-General  met  here  in 
May,  1789,  and  from  this  meeting  dates  the 
French  Revolution.  The  King  of  Prussia  was 
proclaimed  Emperor  of  Germany  here  in  1871.  It 
was  the  residence  of  the  President  of  the  French 
Republic  from  1871  to  1879.  Louis  Phillipe  re- 
stored the  palace  to  its  ancient  splendor.  It  is 
one  of  the  showplaces  of  France  and  is  visited 
annually  by  thousands. 

Note  20. —  In  1789  the  Constituent  Assembly 
proclaimed  that  all  authority  emanated  from  the 
nation,  and  that  there  was  no  authority  in  France 
superior  to  the  law.  Conceiving  that  the  per- 
sistence of  the  old  provinces  with  their  variety 
of  local  customs  might  be  an  obstacle  to  the 
thorough  working  out  of  this  idea,  it  abolished 
these  provinces,  as  administrative  divisions,  and 
divided  France  into  eighty-three  departments 
which  were  administered  by  locally  elective  offi- 
cials for  a  time.  The  Revolutionary  Government 
took  some  of  their  power  away  from  these,  ap- 
pointing a  commissioner  of  its  own  in  each  de- 
partment. When  Napoleon  became  First  Consul, 
all  elective  representation  in  the  department  was 
abolished  and  a  prefect  was  appointed  by  him 
for  each.  These  prefects,  each  in  his  own  de- 
partment, controlled  the  entire  departmental  ad- 
ministration:  Conscription,  taxation,  agriculture, 
commerce,  public  works,  education,  and  charity  — 
"  everything  relating  to  the  public  wealth,  the  na- 
tional prosperity,  and  the  peace  of  those  under 
your  Administration,"  as  a  circular  of  instructions 
to  prefects  issued  at  the  time,  expressed  it.  This 

[160] 


Notes 


system  prevailed  under  the  Consulate,  the  Empire, 
and  the  Restoration.  Decentralization  and  local 
representation  in  departmental  affairs  began  in 
1830  and  were  extended  after  the  revolution  of 
1848,  and  still  further  under  the  Republic.  Though 
the  prefect  has  lost  much  of  his  former  power, 
he  is  still  an  important  functionary.  He  repre- 
sents the  national  government;  he  has  a  certain 
veto  or  restraining  power  over  mayors  and  mu- 
nicipal councils;  he  is  responsible  for  the  public 
order ;  he  can  call  for  troops  to  suppress  riots ;  his 
regulations  regarding  matters  coming  within  the 
scope  of  his  authority  have  the  force  of  law; 
and  he  has  the  appointment  of  a  large  number 
and  variety  of  minor  functionaries  and  public 
employes,  including  the  teachers  in  the  public 
schools. 

Note  21. —  The  Battle  of  Rossbach  was  fought 
November  5,  1757,  between  25,000  Prussians,  un- 
der Frederick  the  Great,  and  64,000  French  and 
Imperial  troops  —  the  French  under  the  Duke  of 
Soubise  and  the  Imperial  troops  under  the  Prince 
of  Hildburghausen.  It  was  one  of  the  decisive 
battles  of  "  The  Seven  Years  War." 

Note  22. —  The  body  known  as  the  University 
of  Paris  was  founded  about  1150,  and  from  its 
beginning  had  very  great  privileges.  It  alone 
had  the  control  and  direction  of  public  instruc- 
tion, and  in  addition  had  jurisdiction  in  other 
particulars.  On  numerous  occasions  it  took  part 
in  public  affairs.  It  defended  the  liberties  of  the 
Church  in  France,  and  carried  on  long  struggles 
against  certain  religious  orders.  The  Univer- 

[161] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


sity  was  suppressed  in  1790,  but  was  reorganized 
by  Napoleon  in  1808.  He  put  at  the  head  of  it  a 
Grand  Master,  and  placed  it  directly  under  the 
control  of  the  state ;  and  France  was  territorially 
divided  into  six  academies,  each  presided  over  by 
a  Rector.  At  the  present  time  the  name  Univer- 
sities is  given  to  the  several  bodies,  which,  each 
in  its  own  division  of  France,  has  direction  and 
control  of  higher  education.  These  bodies  are 
all  united  in  a  Council  of  the  University,  of  which 
the  Minister  of  Public  Instruction  is  Grand 
Master. 

Note  23. —  The  Lycees  are  a  system  of  free 
schools  for  secondary  instruction.  They  were 
founded  in  Paris  in  1787  for  instruction  in  lit- 
erature and  science. 

Note  24. —  La  Gabelle  was  a  tax.  on  salt,  a  part 
of  a  system  of  state  salt  monopoly  under  the 
ancient  regime  in  France.  The  price  of  salt 
varied  in  different  provinces.  Each  individual 
was  obliged  to  buy  a  certain  amount  of  salt,  re- 
sulting in  much  that  was  vexatious  in  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  tax  and  the  monopoly.  This  salt  tax 
was  fully  established  in  1340  and  was  abolished 
in  1789  with  many  other  tyrannies  and  abuses  by 
the  spirit  of  equality  and  freedom  which  brought 
about  the  French  Revolution. 

Note  25. —  In  France  the  institution  of  juries 
in  criminal  cases  dates  from  1791.  It  was  one  of 
the  fruits  of  the  French  Revolution,  and  in  the 
action  and  reaction  of  opinion  that  surged  so 
violently  during  the  years  immediately  following, 

[162] 


Notes 


it  had  hardly  had  time  to  become  a  firmly  fixed 
institution  in  Napoleon's  day. 

Note  26. —  Achille  de  Harlay,  President  of  the 
Parliament  of  Paris,  was  born  in  Paris  in  1536. 
He  died  in  1619.  Matthieu  Mole  (1584-1656), 
President  of  the  Parliament  of  Paris,  and  Keeper 
of  the  Seal,  played  an  important  role  during  the 
Fronde.  He  negotiated  the  Peace  of  Ruel  early 
in  1649. 

Note  27. —  At  the  Revolution  the  restrictions  on 
the  freedom  of  the  press  were  swept  away,  the 
Assembly  declaring  it  to  be  the  right  of  every 
citizen  to  print  and  publish  his  opinions.  The 
press  remained  effectually  free  in  France  until 
the  Law  of  February  5,  1810,  secured  by  Na- 
poleon, established  a  direction  of  the  press.  The 
restrictions  on  the  freedom  of  the  press  continued 
to  be  a  factor, 'in  some  degree,  of  every  change  in 
the  form  of  government  from  that  time  to  the 
establishment  of  the  Third  Republic,  when  liberty 
of  the  press  was  completely  reestablished. 

Note  28. —  The  Bank  of  France,  which  had 
been  founded  in  1799,  was  definitely  organized  by 
the  law  of  April  26,  1806,  which  gave  the  man- 
agement of  the  bank  to  a  governor  and  two 
deputy  governors,  appointed  by  the  chief  of  the 
state,  and  assisted  by  a  council  of  fifteen  regents 
and  three  censors,  elected  by  the  shareholders. 
In  addition  to  issuing  bank  notes  which  circulate 
as  freely  as  gold,  the  bank  has  all  the  usual 
banking  powers,  and  transacts  a  wide  variety  of 
commercial  and  financial  functions.  It  is  the 

[163] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


great  instrument  of  credit  in  France.  By  loans 
in  difficult  circumstances  it  has  more  than  once 
supported  the  government,  which  owns  a  large 
number  of  its  shares. 

Note  29. —  Laissez  faire,  laissez  passer,  was  the 
maxim  into  which  Gournay  (1712-1759),  one  of 
the  leading  members  of  that  school  of  political 
economists  known  as  the  Physiocrats,  condensed 
his  doctrine  of  industrial  freedom,  which  is  that 
trade  and  industry  and  every  guiltless  exercise  of 
individual  will  should  be  left  free  from  taxation 
or  restriction  or  interference  by  government,  ex- 
cept so  far  as  is  required  by  public  peace  and 
order.  No  English  translation  of  the  French 
expression  conveys  any  idea  of  the  economic  doc- 
trine it  embodies;  and  thus  the  expression  itself, 
usually  abridged  to  laissez  faire  has  been  adopted 
into  our  language  as  the  term  by  which  this  doc- 
trine is  identified  or  understood. 

Note  30. —  Emigres  is  a  name  given  to  those 
members  of  the  French  aristocracy,  or  more  ex- 
actly to  those  partisans  of  the  old  regime,  who 
fled  from  France  beginning  within  a  few  days 
after  the  fall  of  the  Bastille,  July  14,  1789.  The 
emigres  appealed  to  foreign  governments  and 
brought  about  armed  invasion  of  their  own 
country. 

Note  31. —  The  Island  of  Martinique  is  one  of 
the  Lesser  Antilles,  and  has  been  a  French  pos- 
session, with  short  interruptions,  for  nearly  three 
hundred  years.  African  slave  labor  was  early 
introduced,  and  by  1736  there  were  72,000  blacks. 


Notes 


Slavery  was  abolished  by  the  Convention  in  the 
early  course  of  the  French  Revolution,  and  in 
1794  the  island  was  taken  possession  of  by  the 
English  under  Sir  John  Jervis  and  Sir  Charles 
Grey,  and  retained  for  eight  years,  and  it  is  of 
this  action  that  Napoleon  speaks.  The  Empress 
Josephine  was  born  in  Martinique  in  1763. 

Note  32. —  Joseph  Balsamo,  Count  of  Caglios- 
tro,  an  Italian  occultist,  physician,  and  clever 
charlatan,  was  born  at  Palermo,  about  1743.  He 
had  a  successful  career  at  the  court  of  Louis  xvi 
and  in  Parisian  society.  He  died  in  1795. 

Note  33. —  Emmanuel  Kant  (1724-1804),  one 
of  the  greatest  of  philosophers,  was  the  grandson 
of  a  Scotchman  who  settled  in  East  Prussia.  He 
was  born  at  Konigsberg.  He  is  best  known  by 
his  Critique  of  Pure  Reason. 

Note  34. —  Turenne  (1611-1675)  was  one  of 
France's  greatest  captains.  In  character  he  was 
very  simple,  very  modest.  His  military  genius 
utilized  careful  calculations  and  deep  study  and 
thought.  His  memoirs  have  been  published  and 
their  value  to  students  of  military  matters  is 
very  great. 

Note  35. —  This  is  the  philosophical  summing 
up  of  Napoleon's  experience  in  Egypt.  Nelson's 
victory  of  the  Nile,  lost  to  Napoleon  and  the 
French  the  control  of  the  Mediterranean.  The 
Directory  was  no  longer  able  to  reenforce  him. 
In  no  way  could  he  make  up  for  the  losses  to  his 
army  which  even  victories  entailed.  His  army 

[165] 


Napoleon  in  His  Own  Words 


became  smaller  and  smaller;  but,  with  that  genius 
for  success  which  was  the  mainspring  of  his  des- 
tiny, Napoleon,  after  the  Acre  campaign,  seized 
the  right  moment  and  a  plausible  reason  for 
transferring  the  command  to  the  less  subtle 
Kleber,  and  himself  returned  to  France  with  the 
luster  of  success  not  wholly  dimmed,  to  embrace 
opportunity,  and  command  armies  still  animated 
and  recruited  by  the  Republican  youth  of  France. 

Note  36. —  General  Forrest,  the  brilliant  cav- 
alry leader  of  the  Confederacy,  is  said  to  have 
expressed  this  guiding  principle  by  declaring  that 
the  way  to  win  was  to  "  get  there  first  with  the 
most  men." 

Note  37. —  By  the  campaign  of  March  20,  Na- 
poleon refers  to  the  events  following  his  return 
from  Elba  and  his  arrival  at  Paris.  He  landed 
March  i,  1815,  between  Cannes  and  Antibes,  and 
twenty  days  later  entered  the  Tuileries  in  triumph. 
Louis  xvin  left  the  Tuileries  March  19,  and  on 
the  next  day  Napoleon  entered  Paris. 

Note  38. —  Napoleon  at  this  time  had  not  been 
long  at  St.  Helena.  It  was  still  fresh  in  his  mem- 
ory that  after  his  abdication  June  22,  1815,  in 
favor  of  his  son,  the  Chamber  of  Representa- 
tives passed  this  son  over,  and  named  an  execu- 
tive commission  of  five,  the  Bourbons,  in  the 
person  of  Louis  xvm,  thus  being  restored. 

Note  39. —  This  utterance  of  Napoleon  acquires 
a  particular  significance  at  this  time  when,  as  a 
result  of  the  war  between  Germany  and  Austria 

[166] 


Notes 


on  the  one  side,  and  Russia,  France,  and  Great 
Britain  on  the  other,  so  much  has  been  said  and  is 
being  said  of  the  possibility,  as  a  result  of  this 
war,  of  just  what  Napoleon  expressed  the  desire 
to  do. 


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